Banco de Portugal

The Banco de Portugal is the national central bank for Portugal within the Eurosystem. It was the Portuguese central bank from 1846 to 1998, issuing the escudo. It was founded by royal charter in 1846, during the reign of Queen Maria II of Portugal, by a merger of the Banco de Lisboa, the first bank founded in Portugal, and insurer Companhia Confiança Nacional. The bank has branch offices in Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Évora, Faro, Funchal, Leiria, Porto and Viseu. In addition to its monetary role, the Banco de Portugal is also a financial supervisory authority. In that capacity, it increasingly implements policies set at the European Union level. It is the national competent authority for Portugal within European Banking Supervision. It is a voting member of the Board of Supervisors of the European Banking Authority. It is Portugal's designated National Resolution Authority and plenary session member of the Single Resolution Board. It is also a member of the European Systemic Risk Board.