Bank and Finance Employees Day in Belarus Date in the current year: January 7, 2024

The history of the banking system of Belarus dates back to the second half of the 19th century, when Belarus was part of the Russian Empire. On January 8, 1870, the Senate of the Russian Empire signed a decree on the establishment of a public bank in the Belarusian city of Gomel. Even though this date can be considered the birthday of Belarus’s first bank, the professional holiday of Belarusian bank and finance employees commemorates another event.

In December 1921, the Council of People’s Commissars (Sovnarkom) of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR) adopted a decree on the establishment of the Belarusian office of the State Bank in the Belarusian capital of Minsk. It was officially opened on January 3, 1922, which is considered the beginning of the banking and finance system of Belarus.

In 1923–1925, branches of all-union joint-stock banks began to open in the Byelorussian SSR. They included, for example, Prombank and All-Union Cooperative Bank. A system of local banks (Gomel Communal Bank, Byelorussian Communal Bank, and others) was also formed during the mid-1920s.

The banking system of the BSSR was restructured during the mid-20th century. As a result of restructuring, it included Communal Bank, as well as offices and branches of the State Bank of the USSR, Prombank of the USSR, Agricultural Bank of the USSR, and Sorgbank of the USSR (until 1957).

The last major reorganization of the banking system of the BSSR took place in 1987 in the wake of Perestroika with its economic reforms, which included a gradual transition from a planned to a market economy. The reorganization included the establishment of banks operating on the principles of self-management and self-financing, which was the first step toward the formation of a modern banking system consisting of state banks and commercial banks.

Following the declaration of the state sovereignty of Belarus, the Supreme Soviet of the BSSR adopted the laws “On the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus” and “On Banks and Banking Activities in the Republic of Belarus” in December 1990. According to the new laws, all Soviet banking institutions in the country were declared the property of newly sovereign Belarus. The Belarusian Republican Bank of the State Bank of the USSR was transformed into the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus, and all specialized state banks became joint-stock commercial banks. This was the beginning of the present-day banking system of Belarus.

Most professional holidays in Belarus aren’t non-working days, but Bank and Finance Employees Day is because it always falls on a Sunday during the season of New Year’s holidays. Belarusian banks and financial institutions usually hold celebratory events for their employees on the closest business day in January.