Former Site of the Central Bank

Former Site of the Central Bank

The former site of the Central Bank is a cultural heritage conservation unit of Guangdong Province.

The former site of the Central Bank is located at No. 193 Yanjiang Middle Road. It was personally established by Dr. Sun Yat-sen on August 15, 1924, the 13th year of the Republic of China. The two-story building features a reinforced concrete structure, with the outer wall of the central hall constructed from granite. Two Western-style stone lions stand on either side of the entrance. Ascending the stone steps leads to the business hall, above which is an oval skylight dome. The corridors around the dome are adorned with European-style Corinthian and Roman columns. The remaining exterior walls are coated with washed stone finish, decorated with oval patterns. The roof is topped with a low parapet, and the building is enclosed by a perimeter wall. Later, a rain shelter was added above the main entrance. The current structure remains well-preserved.

In January 1924, the first cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party was realized, and the revolutionary government was based in Guangzhou. At that time, the financial system was in chaos and the fiscal situation was difficult. While establishing the Whampoa Military Academy, Dr. Sun Yat-sen also worked to set up the Central Bank.

On August 15 of the same year, the Central Bank was officially established, initially located at the former site of the Bank of China on Nan Di, Guangzhou (now the site of the Guangzhou Branch of the People's Bank of China). The first board of directors included Hu Hanmin, Liao Zhongkai, Deng Zeru, Ye Gongchuo, Sun Ke, Lin Yuncai, and T.V. Soong, with T.V. Soong serving as the bank’s president. Directly under the leadership of the National Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank established three currency exchange and issuance offices within Guangzhou and eleven branches across the province.

The Central Bank’s scope of operations and main services included: issuing currency, general and regional exchange notes, and military scrip to support the Northern Expedition; recasting the 1923 version of the silver dollar and issuing the 1928 version; conducting various currency exchange services; acting as an agent for the national treasury and provincial treasury collections and disbursements; handling deposits and remittances for government agencies, organizations, and individuals; and providing loans, mainly short-term working capital loans to institutions and organizations. In 1927, after the establishment of the Nationalist Government in Nanjing, a Central Bank branch was added in Shanghai. The Guangzhou-based Central Bank was subsequently renamed the Guangdong Central Bank in March 1929 (the 18th year of the Republic of China) and then renamed the Guangdong Provincial Bank in January 1932 (the 21st year of the Republic of China).

After the Japanese invasion of Guangzhou, the original branches of the Central Bank were gradually withdrawn. Following Japan’s surrender in August 1945 (the 34th year of the Republic of China), the Guangzhou branch of the Central Bank (now the site of the Guangdong Pharmaceutical Company on Changdi, currently at No. 193 Yanjiang Middle Road) resumed operations, with Feng Chenggong as manager. It was later relocated in 1946 (the 35th year of the Republic of China) to the current site at No. 193 Yanjiang Middle Road, where the Guangzhou Branch of the People's Bank of China now stands. The bank had the authority to issue banknotes to strengthen the financial system and support military and political advancement.

In 1993, the Guangzhou Municipal Government designated it as a municipal-level cultural heritage conservation unit, and in July 2002, the Guangdong Provincial Government listed it as a provincial-level cultural heritage conservation unit.

Taiping Tongjin Community: Taiping Tongjin Community…… More information about the Taiping Tongjin Community++

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Guangdong Provincial Cultural Heritage Conservation Units

· Fifth Batch of Municipal Cultural Heritage Conservation Units in Beijing