The Ionian Bank and its Privilege of Issue (1839-1920)

Contents of the publication

The publication The Ionian Bank and its Privilege of Issue (1839-1920) presents the history of Ionian Bank’s privilege to issue currency. Ionian Bank was the first bank to operate in Greece. In 2000 it merged with Alpha Credit Bank to form Alpha Bank.

The catalogue presents a period in the history of Ionian Bank (1839-1920) when its course was intertwined with the destiny of the Ionian Island. It is divided into 6 sections:

• First efforts.
• Establishment.
• Challenges.
• Unification.
• Renewal.
• Transformations.

Each section is accompanied by rich illustrations and based on rare items from the Alpha Bank Historical Archives: documents, securities, accounting book volumes, photographs, memorabilia. Exhibits from the permanent exhibition of the Banknote Museum of Ionian Bank in Corfu are also included.

Moreover, the catalogue features items on loan from other historical archives, institutions and libraries from Greece and abroad. Lastly, it presents representative materials from the records of the Ionian Bank held at the collection of the British Library of Political and Economic, London School of Economics.

The catalogue of a remarkable exhibition

The catalogue accompanied the exhibition “The Ionian Bank and its privilege of issue (1839-1920)”, held at the Banknote Museum of Ionian Bank in Corfu on the 150-year anniversary from the Unification of the Ionian Islands with Greece.

A short bilingual documentary was produced for the purposes of the exhibition. It was an internal production by the Alpha Bank Historical Archives, with an original score and rare items from its collections. The documentary also features footage on loan from third-party organisations in Greece and abroad.

The challenges of establishing the bank

During the 1830s, the agricultural economy of the Ionian Islands suffered in many ways. The British authorities on the Islands considered the establishment of an issuing bank necessary.

The plan was met with resistance from Great Britain and the Ionian Islands, as it stood in conflict with many interests. In the end, in 1839, the Senate of the United States of the Ionian Islands passed a resolution on the establishment of Ionian Bank Ltd.

The privilege of issue

Ionian Bank was granted the sole right to issue banknotes (paper money) in the Islands for 20 years. This was the most powerful weapon to ensure its survival. The bank held on to its privilege until 1920.

Edited by: Kostas Kostis
Publisher: Alpha Bank
Place and time: Athens, 2014
Dimensions: 29 x 21 cm
Pages: 40
Cover type: Paperback
Greek ISBN: 978-618-5072-07-0