The Yokohama Specie Bank in Yokohama City was established in 1880 for the sake of international payment for trade with foreign countries.

This quasi-national bank was established to provide international financial support for Japan, which had begun to modernize and achieve economic development following the Meiji Restoration.  As a foreign exchange system didn’t exist at that time, the main role of the bank was settlement in cash for international commerce.  The bank was once a very prestigious institution, so much so that its president was considered a stepping stone to the position of the Governor of the Bank of Japan.  However, it was dismantled by GHQ after the Second World War, and its functions were taken over by the Bank of Tokyo established in Tokyo at that time.  The photo shows the old head office of the Yokohama Specie Bank, built in 1904,

in Bashamichi, Yokohama City.  This building is used now for Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Cultural History.  This bank used to have 19 branch offices in Japan, mainly in big port towns, and foreign countries, mainly in China.  15 of 19 buildings survived and they are used for museums or offices of different financial institutions.

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