Danmarks Nationalbank was established on 1 August 1818 by King Frederick VI of Denmark to restore the monetary system after the state bankruptcy in 1813. Danmarks Nationalbank became an independent institution in 1936, and the current legal basis for its activities is from the same year.

Among other things, the Danmarks Nationalbank Act states that the objective of Danmarks Nationalbank is to maintain a safe and secure currency system, and to facilitate and regulate the traffic in money and the extension of credit. Danmarks Nationalbank’s monetary policy is determined independently of the Parliament and government.

The three main objectives of Danmarks Nationalbank are:

1. Stable prices: Danmarks Nationalbank helps to maintain stable prices, i.e. low inflation. This is done by pursuing a fixed-exchange-rate policy against the euro.
2. Safe payments: Danmarks Nationalbank promotes safe settlement of cash and electronic payments. This is done by issuing banknotes and coins and ensuring that payments can be settled between banks.
3. A stable financial system: Danmarks Nationalbank helps to maintain the stability of the financial system. This is done by overseeing financial stability and payment systems, compiling financial statistics and managing the central government’s borrowing and debt.

The values of Danmarks Nationalbank:

• While safeguarding its traditions, Danmarks Nationalbank shall actively renew itself and adapt to trends in society and to the requirements of the surrounding world. Danmarks Nationalbank shall protect its credibility by not only displaying professional competence, managerial skills and sound judgement, but also by maintaining an organization which lives up to the principles Danmarks Nationalbank considers to be significant to society’s development: efficiency, cost awareness and readiness for change. Focusing on its primary tasks, on an ongoing basis Danmarks Nationalbank shall set priorities for its work.
• Danmarks Nationalbank shall be an attractive workplace capable of attracting, motivating and retaining well-qualified employees and offering them working conditions which ensure balance between work and leisure. Key qualifications are initiative, commitment, adaptability and a willingness and ability to cooperate across professional barriers, and with other areas of the organization. All employees must have the necessary training and/or education to handle their tasks. It is a joint responsibility to ensure that everyone is trained and developed in preparation for new tasks.
• Danmarks Nationalbank shall be service-oriented in terms of both the external relations of line functions, and the internal relations of staff functions with the rest of the bank. Teamwork and project work within each unit and between departments is encouraged. In cooperation with the employees, managers shall set priorities for tasks, define targets and ensure the necessary responsibility sharing and communication, thereby limiting the need for detailed supervision. This gives employees the widest possible scope to define their own working methods, solve tasks and take decisions themselves to the greatest extent possible.
• Danmarks Nationalbank’s relations with the financial sector are based on market-oriented solutions, and the costs to the sector and to Danmarks Nationalbank must be weighed against the value to society of the system or requirement. The underlying principle for systems and requirements relating to the credit institutions shall be equal treatment irrespective of size, geographical location and national affiliation.
• In relations with public authorities and players in the financial system, and in international cooperation, Danmarks Nationalbank shall seek influence and express attitudes which are in line with Danmarks Nationalbank’s objectives. In relations with the public Danmarks Nationalbank shall, via the media and otherwise, ensure an understanding of the decisions relating to Danmarks Nationalbank's own tasks. With regard to financial conditions or economic policy in general, Danmarks Nationalbank shall comment on these issues if they are of material importance to its implementation of monetary and foreign-exchange policy, or to the efficiency and stability of the financial markets.

Useful links

Currency of Denmark:

Danish krone

List of Central Banks:

Central Banks

Official website of Danmarks Nationalbank:

www.nationalbanken.dk

Royal Danish Mint:

www.royalmint.dk

International Monetary Fund:

www.imf.org

The Danish Bankers Association:

www.finansraadet.dk

The Copenhagen Stock Exchange:

www.nasdaqomxnordic.com

Ministry of Finance of Denmark:

uk.fm.dk

The Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs of Denmark:

www.em.dk

Historical events of Danmarks Nationalbank:

Historical events