Bank Polski SA
Bank Polski SA was the central bank of the Second Polish Republic from 1924 until its replacement by the National Bank of Poland after the Second World War.
Last updated August 26, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
Bank Polski SA, formally Bank Polski Spółka Akcyjna, was the central bank of the Second Polish Republic. It was established during the monetary stabilization program led by Prime Minister and Finance Minister Władysław Grabski, replacing the Polish National Loan Bank and helping introduce the Polish złoty in 1924. The institution was deliberately organized as a joint-stock company rather than as a conventional government department. Shares were offered to the Polish public, while the State Treasury initially held only a small direct stake. The arrangement gave the bank a degree of formal autonomy, although the state retained important powers over senior appointments and financial oversight. The bank was announced in late 1923 and became operational on 15 April 1924. Its creation formed part of a broader effort to end the instability associated with the post-First World War Polish marka. The new złoty was introduced at a conversion rate of one złoty for 1.8 million marka. Bank Polski was responsible for issuing currency, managing monetary reserves, supporting exchange-rate stability, and serving as the country’s central monetary institution. Its note issuance was subject to reserve requirements involving gold, silver, and foreign currencies, while rules governing dividends limited the extent to which profits could be distributed to shareholders. The stabilization program encountered difficulties. Expansion of the money supply through coin issuance contributed to inflationary pressure in 1925 and 1926, and the bank suspended the free convertibility of the złoty into U.S. dollars in July 1925. Convertibility into gold was restored in October 1927 after the political changes associated with the May Coup. The reserve framework was also strengthened: the minimum backing requirement for currency issuance rose from at least 30 percent to 40 percent after the 1927 reform. British adviser E. Hilton Young contributed to the design of the institution, and Charles S. Dewey, a former U.S. Treasury official, became its first foreign adviser to the bank’s Council in 1927. Bank Polski’s most consequential wartime action was the evacuation of Poland’s gold reserves before the German invasion in September 1939. Approximately 105,000 kilograms of gold were moved out of the country through Romania, Turkey, and Syria. Much of the reserve was transferred onward to France, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The bank first operated from Paris and then relocated to London alongside the Polish Government in Exile after the fall of France. From exile it helped finance the Polish government’s wartime activities and maintained the institutional continuity of the prewar Polish state. After the establishment of the communist National Bank of Poland in January 1945, Bank Polski lost its monopoly over note issuance and no longer functioned as Poland’s central bank. Its governor, Bohdan Winiarski, led an effort to return the institution to Warsaw in 1946. Gold reserves and banknotes held in British, French, and American institutions were transferred back or otherwise administered in the postwar settlement, but the bank’s notes were not put into circulation. Its assets were subsequently used by the communist authorities for state expenditure and compensation arrangements connected with nationalization. Liquidation began in 1951 and was completed on 7 January 1952. The institution is sometimes called the “Second Bank of Poland” to distinguish it from the nineteenth-century Bank Polski, which was a separate historical institution. Its former Warsaw headquarters, originally built between 1908 and 1911, was destroyed during the Second World War and was not reconstructed. Surviving architectural elements were later incorporated into the Senator office complex built on the site.
History
Bank Polski SA was created as the central banking institution of the Second Polish Republic during the monetary reforms of Władysław Grabski. The Polish National Loan Bank had been unable to provide a durable solution to the instability of the postwar marka, so the government announced a new Bank of Poland in December 1923. The institution was completed on 15 April 1924 as a joint-stock company whose shares were offered to the public. The State Treasury held only a small direct shareholding, although public authorities retained influence through appointment rights and the Finance Minister’s veto over Council appointments. The bank’s establishment coincided with the introduction of the złoty at a rate of one złoty for 1.8 million marka. Its responsibilities included issuing currency, holding monetary reserves, managing exchange stability, and conducting central-bank operations for the Polish state. At least 30 percent of its note issue was initially required to be covered by gold, silver, and foreign currencies. The bank’s dividend rules also restricted distributions to shareholders and directed a portion of higher profits to the Treasury. The stabilization process was not smooth. Government coin issuance contributed to inflation in 1925 and 1926, and Bank Polski suspended free conversion of the złoty into U.S. dollars on 30 July 1925. Gold convertibility was restored on 15 October 1927, after the May Coup and the return of Józef Piłsudski to executive power. The reserve requirement was subsequently increased to 40 percent. The institution drew on international technical advice without relying on a League of Nations stabilization loan. E. Hilton Young advised on the bank’s design, while Charles S. Dewey became a foreign adviser to its Council in 1927. The bank’s prewar headquarters in Warsaw occupied a building originally constructed between 1908 and 1911 for the State Bank of the Russian Empire. The building stood on the site of a former Polish mint. During the German occupation it was used by the Bank of Issue in Poland, the German-controlled institution responsible for currency operations in the General Government, even though Bank Polski itself had left the country. In 1939, as the German invasion approached, Bank Polski organized the evacuation of Poland’s gold reserves. Approximately 105,000 kilograms of gold were moved through Romania, Turkey, and Syria, with much of the reserve ultimately reaching France, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The bank first operated from Paris from September 1939 until July 1940. After France fell, it moved to London with the Polish Government in Exile and helped finance the government’s wartime effort. The postwar political order ended Bank Polski’s domestic central-bank function. The National Bank of Poland was founded on 15 January 1945 by the communist authorities. In 1946, Governor Bohdan Winiarski directed efforts to move Bank Polski back to Warsaw. Assets, gold, and British-printed banknotes associated with the institution were returned or administered through postwar arrangements, but the bank’s notes were not released into circulation because the new authorities had removed its note-issuance privilege. Some gold and deposits were subsequently used for state expenditure and compensation agreements related to the nationalization of industry. Liquidation began in 1951 and concluded on 7 January 1952. The former headquarters was not rebuilt after wartime destruction. In the 2010s, the Senator office complex was constructed on the site and incorporated some surviving architectural elements. Bank Polski SA is also known as the “Second Bank of Poland,” a term used to distinguish it from the nineteenth-century institution with the same historical name.
- 1952
Liquidation completed
[1]Bank Polski SA was fully liquidated on 7 January.
- 1945
National Bank of Poland founded
[1]The new authorities established the National Bank of Poland, which superseded Bank Polski’s central-bank and note-issuance functions.
- 1940
Wartime headquarters moved to London
[1]After operating in Paris, Bank Polski relocated to London with the Polish Government in Exile.
- 1939
Gold reserves evacuated
[1]The bank evacuated roughly 105,000 kilograms of gold through Romania, Turkey, and Syria before the invasion of Poland.
- 1927
Gold convertibility restored
[1]Convertibility into gold was restored on 15 October, and the bank’s reserve requirement was later increased to 40 percent.
- 1925
Dollar convertibility suspended
[1]The bank suspended free convertibility of the złoty into U.S. dollars amid inflationary and monetary pressures.
- 1924
Bank Polski SA begins operations
[1]The joint-stock central bank was completed on 15 April and replaced the Polish National Loan Bank; the złoty was introduced during the same reform.
- 1923
Creation of the new Bank of Poland announced
[1]The government announced the establishment of a new Bank of Poland on 3 December as part of Grabski’s monetary reform program.
Products and positioning
A national central bank created to stabilize Poland’s currency and monetary system after postwar inflation, with formal joint-stock ownership and significant constitutional links to the Polish state.
National currency · 1924
Polish złoty
Bank Polski introduced and managed the złoty as part of the 1924 monetary reform. The currency replaced the unstable Polish marka at a conversion rate of one złoty for 1.8 million marka. The bank’s reserve and convertibility policies were central to the currency’s stabilization, although convertibility into U.S. dollars was suspended in 1925 and gold convertibility was restored in 1927.
Central banking · 1924
Central-bank note issuance
The institution issued Poland’s currency and was required to maintain specified levels of backing in gold, silver, and foreign currencies. Its note-issuing privilege ended after the postwar establishment of the National Bank of Poland, and Bank Polski’s remaining notes were not released into circulation.
Reserve management · 1924
Gold and foreign-reserve management
Bank Polski managed the monetary reserves supporting the złoty. In 1939 it organized the evacuation of approximately 105,000 kilograms of gold out of Poland, moving the reserves through several countries before transferring much of them to institutions in France, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
Brand decisions
1945
Transfer central-bank functions to the National Bank of PolandStrategyBackground
The postwar communist authorities created a new central bank within the reorganized Polish state.
Action taken
The National Bank of Poland was founded on 15 January 1945, and Bank Polski was deprived of its note-issuance privilege.
Aftermath
Bank Polski’s postwar role was reduced to managing residual assets before liquidation was completed in 1952.
1939
Evacuate Poland’s gold reservesStrategyBackground
The German invasion threatened the bank’s reserves and the continuity of the Polish monetary authority.
Action taken
The bank moved approximately 105,000 kilograms of gold through Romania, Turkey, and Syria, with much of it eventually reaching Allied financial institutions.
Aftermath
The reserves supported the continued operation of the Polish Government in Exile and the bank’s wartime activities from Paris and London.
1925
Suspend free convertibility of the złoty into U.S. dollarsStrategyBackground
Inflationary pressure associated with monetary expansion weakened the stabilization program.
Action taken
Bank Polski suspended free conversion of the złoty into U.S. dollars on 30 July 1925.
Aftermath
Gold convertibility was later restored in October 1927 after further monetary and political changes.
Recent events
- 1952
Bank Polski SA is liquidated[1]
Bankruptcy
The institution’s liquidation was completed on 7 January 1952 after its postwar note-issuing powers had been removed.
- 1945
National Bank of Poland replaces Bank Polski as central bank[1]
Other
The postwar communist authorities established the National Bank of Poland, ending Bank Polski’s role as the country’s note-issuing central bank.
- 1940
Bank Polski relocates to London with the Polish Government in Exile[1]
Other
Following the fall of France, the bank transferred its wartime operations from Paris to London and supported the Polish government in exile.
- 1939
Gold reserves evacuated before the invasion of Poland[1]
Other
The bank moved approximately 105,000 kilograms of gold out of Poland through several transit countries before the German invasion.
- 1925
Bank Polski suspends free dollar convertibility[1]
Other · Regulation
The bank suspended free convertibility of the złoty into U.S. dollars amid monetary and inflationary pressures.
- 1924
Bank Polski SA begins operations during Poland’s monetary reform[1]
Other · Product launch
The new central bank became operational on 15 April 1924, replacing the Polish National Loan Bank as part of the introduction of the złoty.
Sources1 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/bank-polski-sa · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled