Banque de France

The Banque de France is the central bank of France established on 18 January 1800 by Napoléon Bonaparte to restore confidence in the French banking system after revolution. It was nationalized in 1946 and gained greater autonomy from the government in 1993, a requirement of membership in the EU. The main task of the Bank is to implement the interest rate policy of the European System of Central Banks. Banque de France holds and manages the gold and foreign exchange reserves of the country and regulates the exchange rates between the euro and other currencies. France’s gold reserves are 2,436 tonnes, 4th largest holding in the world after the U.S., Germany and Italy. At 31 December 2025 the Banque de France employed 8,810 staff on a full-time-equivalent basis, and it operates a network of 105 permanent sites made up of 95 departmental branches and 10 economic offices. 49% of the Bank’s employees work in head office, 43% in the branch network and 7.5% at banknote manufacturing facilities.

Some facts:
Net result (2025): EUR 8.1 billion
Profit before tax (2016): EUR 5.6 billion
Gold and currency reserves (2016): EUR 152 billion
Value of France’s gold reserves (2016): EUR 86 billion
Coins in circulation (2016): 19.5 billion

Key Executives:
Emmanuel Moulin - Governor
Denis Beau - First Deputy Governor
Agnès Bénassy-Quéré - Second Deputy Governor
François Villeroy de Galhau was Governor from 2015 until June 2026; Emmanuel Moulin took office on 2 June 2026.

Headquarters address:
31 Rue Croix des Petits Champs
Paris 75001
France
Phone: + 33 01 4292 4292
Website: www.banque-france.fr