Former Site of the Nanjing Branch of Zhongnan Bank

Former Site of the Nanjing Branch of Zhongnan Bank

The former site of the Nanjing Branch of Zhongnan Bank is a cultural relic protection unit of Jiangsu Province.

The former site of the Nanjing Branch of Zhongnan Bank is located at No. 155 Baixia Road, Nanjing, on the northwest corner of the intersection of Baixia Road and Taiping South Road. It now houses the Baixia Sub-branch of Bank of Communications, Nanjing. Constructed in 1936, the building features a reinforced concrete structure in a modernist architectural style, with fire-resistant bricks used for the walls. The façade is uniformly golden yellow and consists of three floors above ground and one below. The lobby is situated at the street corner, topped with a clock tower. Upon entering, a full-height banking hall extends to the right, connected to the upper rooms via an interior corridor. A vault is located on each of the basement, first, and second floors. Established in 1921 by overseas Chinese from Southeast Asia in Shanghai, the Zhongnan Bank set up its Nanjing branch in 1929. During the Anti-Japanese War, the bank was relocated inland, and the original site was successively used as the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Food under the Wang Jingwei puppet regime. In March 1946, the Zhongnan Bank resumed operations and continued until October 1952. In 1960, the building was used to house the Chaoyang Hotel, and in early 1987, it was repurposed as the Baixia Sub-branch of Bank of Communications. In September 2010, the building was listed as an important modern historical building of Nanjing.

On December 19, 2011, the People's Government of Jiangsu Province designated it as part of the seventh batch of provincial-level cultural relic protection units.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Units