Ricardo Salas-Díaz

2025 Atlanta, Georgia

Abstract: This manuscript investigates the question, “Why would any central bank promote culture?” Although numerous central banks are involved to varying degrees in cultural promotion, the motivations behind their ownership of cultural organizations still need to be explored. The Banco de la República provides a compelling case study. Its cultural endeavors began in the 1930s. Despite structural and governance changes, the bank’s commitment to its cultural functions has remained consistent until today. Currently, the bank possesses the country’s most prominent public library network, more than a dozen museums, and several other spaces for cultural activity. This manuscript uses interviews and the board meetings’ minutes to investigate the motives behind the bank’s commitment to culture from 1923 to 1957. I argue that more than being a product of the imagination and effort of any single unique leader, the tension between the national sentiments of its board members and the need for legitimation of bank activities gave rise to its cultural functions. Their appearance and formation were shaped by certain endowments of the bank and the Liberal Party governments’ modernization aims between 1930 and 1946 and the rising demand for cultural services during the conservative governments from 1946 and 1957.