Bank of Amsterdam

The Bank of Amsterdam (Dutch: Amsterdamsche Wisselbank or literally Amsterdam Exchange Bank) was an early bank, vouched for by the city of Amsterdam, established in 1609, the precursor to, if not the first, modern central bank.

During the last decade of the Republic of the United Provinces, in 1790, the premium on the Bank's money disappeared, and by the end of the year it had declared itself insolvent. The City of Amsterdam took over the control in 1791. After the creation of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815, the bank was then finally closed in 1819. Its function was mainly taken over by the Nederlandsche Bank, founded in 1814.

In Renaissance Europe, the currency of small states—such as Genoa, Hamburg, Venice, and Nuremberg—consisted in large part of the currencies of neighboring nations. The foreign money, clipped and worn, lowered the value of a country's currency. A country's own freshly minted money, therefore, bore an agio, being worth more than its stock currency. Furthermore, it was melted as soon as it was released, its metallic content being worth more than its nominal value.

In order to remedy this situation, a bank was founded in 1609 under the protection of the city of Amsterdam. This bank at first received both foreign and local coinage at their real, intrinsic value, deducted a small coinage and management fee, and credited clients in its book for the remainder. This credit was known as bank money. Being always in accord with mint standards, and always of the same value, bank money was worth more than real coinage. At the same time a new regulation was introduced; according to which all bills drawn at Amsterdam worth more than 600 guilders must be paid in bank money. This both removed all uncertainty from these bills and compelled all merchants to keep an account with the bank, which in turn occasioned a certain demand for bank money.

Bank money had several distinct advantages over other forms of money. It was secure from fire, robbery and other accidents; was backed by the city of Amsterdam; and could be paid or received by a simple transfer, avoiding both the costs of counting and the risks of conveyance. Furthermore, it was of a known, superior quality. Because of the above it bore an agio, being worth more than its nominal value. Consequentially, it was not often that clients asked for their money to be extracted from the bank. A shilling freshly minted would buy no more than a clipped and worn one. It was better for clients to sell the debt the bank owed them—their credit—at the market, earning a premium, which is the expression of the aforementioned agio.

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