The Short Life of the Bank of Ethiopia

The Bank of Abyssinia, established in 1905, was given a 50-years concession by theEmperor Menelek II. This institution was engaged in issuing notes as well as in any kind ofcommercial banking business. Haile Sellassie, after acceding to the throne in 1930, could not acceptthat the country’s issuing bank was a foreign-owned share company and decided for nationalization.The change was implemented, however, in a soft way, providing an adequate compensation toshareholders, and in agreement with the main foreign shareholder, the National Bank of Egypt. TheBank of Abyssinia went, therefore, into liquidation and a new institution, the Bank of Ethiopia, wasestablished in 1931. The new bank, although under full Government control, retained management,staff, premises and clients of the ceased financial institution. Italian occupation of the country, in1936, brought the liquidation of the Bank of Ethiopia.