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Banco Nacional Ultramarino (, BNU; ; en, National Overseas Bank) is a
Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
banking and financial services corporation. It was a
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...
with operations throughout the world, especially in Portugal's former overseas provinces. It ceased existence as an independent legal entity in Portugal following its merger in 2001 with
Caixa Geral de Depósitos Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) () is a Portuguese state-owned banking corporation, and the largest bank in Portugal, established in Lisbon in 1876. CGD now has presence in 23 countries spanning four continents through branches, representative ...
, the government-owned savings bank. The bank continues operations today under the Banco Nacional Ultramarino brand in
Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
, a Chinese Special Administrative Region and former
Portuguese colony The Portuguese Empire ( pt, Império Português), also known as the Portuguese Overseas (''Ultramar Português'') or the Portuguese Colonial Empire (''Império Colonial Português''), was composed of the overseas colonies, factories, and the l ...
, where it is also licensed to issue
Macanese pataca The Macanese pataca or Macau pataca (; pt, pataca de Macau; sign: $; abbreviation: P; ISO code: MOP) is the currency of the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. It is subdivided into 100 ''avos'' (; ''sin'' ...
banknotes.


Timeline

Banco Nacional Ultramarino (BNU) was established in
Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administrative limits w ...
, Portugal, in 1864 as a
bank of issue A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the currency and monetary policy of a country or monetary union, and oversees their commercial banking system. In contrast to a commercial bank, a central ba ...
for Portuguese overseas territories. the next year it opened branches in
Luanda Luanda () is the capital and largest city in Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major industrial, cultural and urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atlantic coast, Luanda is Angola's administrative centre, its chief seapo ...
,
Angola , national_anthem = "Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordinat ...
and
Praia Praia (, Portuguese for "beach") is the capital and largest city of Cape Verde.Cabo Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...
. Three years after that, in 1868, BNU opened branches in
São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé and Príncipe (; pt, São Tomé e Príncipe (); English: " Saint Thomas and Prince"), officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe ( pt, República Democrática de São Tomé e Príncipe), is a Portuguese-speaking ...
, Goa, and
Lourenço Marques Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088 ...
,
Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
. In 1901 BNU lost its banking monopoly, but retained its note-issuing monopoly in the countries in which BNU operated. The next year, BNU opened branches in
Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
and in Bolama, Portuguese Guinea (present-day
Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau ( ; pt, Guiné-Bissau; ff, italic=no, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫 𞤄𞤭𞤧𞤢𞥄𞤱𞤮, Gine-Bisaawo, script=Adlm; Mandinka: ''Gine-Bisawo''), officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau ( pt, República da Guiné-Bissau, links=no ) ...
). Just before World War I, in 1912, BNU opened branches in
Dili Dili ( Portuguese/ Tetum: ''Díli'') is the capital, largest city of East Timor and the second largest city in Timor islands after Kupang (Indonesia). It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed i ...
,
East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-w ...
(present-day
Timor Leste East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-wes ...
), and in Brazil. *1919 - BNU established a representative office in Stanleyville and a branch in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
. *1920 - BNU established a representative office in
Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...
. *1926 - BNU lost its note-issuing monopoly in Angola with creation of Banco de Angola. BNU transferred its branch in Stanleyville to Banco de Angola.Mambu ma Khenzu, E. 2006. ''A Modern History of Monetary and Financial Systems of Congo, 1885-1995''. (Lewiston, New York: Edwin Mellen), p. 132. *1929 - BNU established Anglo-Portuguese Colonial and Overseas Bank, its subsidiary in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, and converted its branch in Paris to a subsidiary, Banque Franco-Portugaise d’Outre-Mer. In 1952 BNU closed its branches in India. In 1965 BNU, Banco Português do Atlântico, Banco de Angola, and the
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
n company, General Mining and Finance, founded Bank of Lisbon and South Africa. This was later renamed Mercantile Lisbon Bank. In the 1970s, BNU bought a stake in Banque Interatlantique in
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
, and established a representative office in London. In 1974 the Portuguese government nationalized BNU, following the
Carnation Revolution The Carnation Revolution ( pt, Revolução dos Cravos), also known as the 25 April ( pt, 25 de Abril, links=no), was a military coup by left-leaning military officers that overthrew the authoritarian Estado Novo regime on 25 April 1974 in Lisbo ...
. Immediately thereafter, in 1975, local governments nationalized BNU's interests in Mozambique, which became
Banco de Moçambique The Bank of Mozambique ( pt, Banco de Moçambique) is the central bank of Mozambique. The bank does not function as a commercial bank, and has the responsibility of governing the monetary policy, monetary policies of the country. The president (go ...
, and in
São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé and Príncipe (; pt, São Tomé e Príncipe (); English: " Saint Thomas and Prince"), officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe ( pt, República Democrática de São Tomé e Príncipe), is a Portuguese-speaking ...
, which became National Bank of São Tomé and Príncipe. In 1993, the government split National Bank into a central bank, Central Bank of São Tomé and Príncipe, and a commercial bank, Banco Internacional de São Tomé e Príncipe. In
Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...
, BNU's interests became
Bank of Cape Verde The Bank of Cape Verde ( pt, Banco de Cabo Verde) is Cape Verde's central bank. Its headquarter is located on Avenida Amílcar Cabral, in the national capital of Praia, Cape Verde, Praia on the island of Santiago, Cape Verde, Santiago. Its curre ...
. In 1993, the government spun off the commercial banking operations into a new bank,
Banco Comercial do Atlântico The Banco Comercial do Atlântico ( Portuguese meaning the "Atlantic Commercial Bank", abbreviation: BCA) is a Cape Verdean commercial bank. The headquarters of the company are located at Praça Alexandre Albuquerque, in Praia, the capital of Cap ...
. *1988 - Portuguese Government-owned
Caixa Geral de Depósitos Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) () is a Portuguese state-owned banking corporation, and the largest bank in Portugal, established in Lisbon in 1876. CGD now has presence in 23 countries spanning four continents through branches, representative ...
became the majority shareholder of BNU, with the Republic of Portugal the sole other shareholder. *1991 - BNU opened a branch in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. *1993 - BNU opened a branch in
Zhuhai Zhuhai (, ; Yale: ''Jyūhói''), also known as Chuhai is a prefecture-level city located on the west bank of Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern Guangdong province, People's Republic of China, on the southeastern edge of P ...
, a Special Economic Zone of China. *1993 - Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) became the majority shareholder in Banque Franco-Portugaise d’Outre-Mer. In 2002, CGD closed the bank by merging its operations into CGD's branch in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
. *1995 - The Chinese government confirmed that BNU would remain a note issuer in Macao until at least 2010. *1999 - BNU opened representative offices in
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...
and
Panjim Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...
( Goa), and a branch in
Dili Dili ( Portuguese/ Tetum: ''Díli'') is the capital, largest city of East Timor and the second largest city in Timor islands after Kupang (Indonesia). It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed i ...
,
Timor Leste East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-wes ...
. *2000 - BNU reached an agreement with the Administration of Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, under which BNU remains an Agent of the Treasury. *2001 - BNU and Caixa Geral de Depósitos merged through incorporation of BNU into Caixa Geral de Depósitos; Banque Franco-Portugaise d’Outre-Mer became a branch of Caixa Geral; on July 1, 2000, the
Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
branch of Banco Nacional Ultramarino became a bank incorporated in Macau SAR under the name Banco Nacional Ultramarino S.A., but remained wholly owned subsidiary of
Caixa Geral de Depósitos Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) () is a Portuguese state-owned banking corporation, and the largest bank in Portugal, established in Lisbon in 1876. CGD now has presence in 23 countries spanning four continents through branches, representative ...
, retaining until 2010 its functions as a note issuer and Agent of the Treasury. *2002 - Caixa Geral acquired majority ownership (64.8%) of the South African focused
bank holding company A bank holding company is a company that controls one or more banks, but does not necessarily engage in banking itself. The compound bancorp (''banc''/''bank'' + '' corp ration') is often used to refer to these companies as well. United States ...
-
Mercantile Lisbon Bank Holdings Limited Mercantile Bank Limited is a South African commercial bank, founded in 1965. It was previously called Bank of Lisbon International. The bank is headquartered in Sandton, South Africa, and provides products and services in retail banking, corp ...
(MLBH), now known as
Mercantile Bank Holdings Limited Mercantile Bank Limited is a South African commercial bank, founded in 1965. It was previously called Bank of Lisbon International. The bank is headquartered in Sandton, South Africa, and provides products and services in retail banking, corpo ...
, which operates the Mercantile Bank.


Banknotes

The
Monetary Authority of Macao The Monetary Authority of Macao (; pt, Autoridade Monetária de Macau, AMCM) is the currency board and the de facto central bank of Macau. The regulatory institution was established on December 20, 1999, upon the transfer of sovereignty ov ...
has authorized two banks to issue banknotes denominated in
Macanese pataca The Macanese pataca or Macau pataca (; pt, pataca de Macau; sign: $; abbreviation: P; ISO code: MOP) is the currency of the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. It is subdivided into 100 ''avos'' (; ''sin'' ...
, the
Bank of China The Bank of China (BOC; ) is a Chinese majority state-owned commercial bank headquartered in Beijing and the fourth largest bank in the world. The Bank of China was founded in 1912 by the Republican government as China's central bank, rep ...
and Banco Nacional Ultramarino S.A., CGD's subsidiary in
Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
. Owing to Macau's Portuguese colonial past, the languages on the banknotes feature Portuguese as well as Chinese. The Banco Nacional Ultramarino introduced its first pataca notes in 1906, in denominations of 1, 5, 50 and 100 pataca. The next year it introduced 10 and 25 pataca notes. The BNU began to issue lower-value notes with 5, 10 and 50 avo notes in 1920, and 1 and 20 avo notes in 1942. In 1944, it introduced a 500 pataca note. After 1952, coins replaced denominations below 10 patacas. The bank discontinued the 25 pataca note in 1958. Previous note designs included the
coat of arms of Portugal The coat of arms of Portugal is the main heraldic insignia of Portugal. The present model was officially adopted on 30 June 1911, along with the present model of the Flag of Portugal. It is based on the coat of arms used by the Portuguese Kingd ...
; in the current issue BNU's corporate logo has replaced the coat of arms. The current issue of BNU banknotes is: The 2005 series of BNU was printed by Hong Kong Note Printing Limited - Hong Kong.


See also

*
Macanese pataca The Macanese pataca or Macau pataca (; pt, pataca de Macau; sign: $; abbreviation: P; ISO code: MOP) is the currency of the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. It is subdivided into 100 ''avos'' (; ''sin'' ...
*
Mercantile Bank Holdings Limited Mercantile Bank Limited is a South African commercial bank, founded in 1965. It was previously called Bank of Lisbon International. The bank is headquartered in Sandton, South Africa, and provides products and services in retail banking, corpo ...
*
Caixa Geral de Depósitos Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) () is a Portuguese state-owned banking corporation, and the largest bank in Portugal, established in Lisbon in 1876. CGD now has presence in 23 countries spanning four continents through branches, representative ...


References


External links


Banco Nacional Ultramarino branch in Macao


{{Authority control Banks of Macau Defunct banks of Portugal Banks established in 1864 Banks disestablished in 2001 1864 establishments in Portugal Banknote issuers of Macau