Nowadays the role of central bank is unquestioned and nearly ubiquitous. But this was not always the case. My thesis analyses how De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) developed into a central bank during the first four decades of its existence. It analyses both the Its establishment in 1814 was the result of a combination of both the need to address problems in the payment system, i.e. ‘scarcity of money’ (with its deflationary effects) and government’s desire to create access to cheap finance. This motive was important in the establishment of DNB, but in practice not much came of it since DNB was a private company, which effectively safeguarded it from government interference. DNB did not lend to the Government until 1834 and even then it remained limited. Interestingly, the government respected DNB’s independence, as it was well aware of the impact of overt interference on DNB’s reputation and effectiveness. Initially, the circulation of DNB banknotes grew slowly. Acceptance depended on voluntary uptake in the market and it took a long time to build up confidence. Certainly up until about 1840, the market looked upon DNB with suspicion because of its close relationship to government. Besides, there was an alternative means of payment available provided by the cashiers with their current account facilities and clearing process. Only from 1840 onwards, DNB effectively, not de jure, became the monopoly issuer of bank notes in the Netherlands. This marked DNB’s definitive accession to the centre of the money market which was completed with the currency overhaul that began in 1847. After this, DNB’s reputation for being a reliable issuer was established once and for all and banknote circulation grew rapidly from then on. By 1852, DNB’s activities clearly distinguished it from other financial institutions and then it can justly be called ´central bank´ for the first time.