The first banks were established as early as during the 3rd millennium BC. Most historians agree that religious temples served as the first financial institutions. Some researches even name the first bank in the world – the temple of Samas, the god of justice in the city of Sippar. It was the most reputable financial institution of the ancient world. People could make deposits of cattle, grain, goods or gold and gems. In the ancient world temples were the safest place to keep valuables. Thieves did not dare to steal from temples that were believed to be protected by gods. Even if the fraudsters were not struck by a lightening at the crime scene they were very likely to face death penalty if caught by authorities.

A deposit account was not the only financial service offered at the temples. It is a well-known fact that Babylonian priests gave loans to merchants. As we can see from Hammurabi’s Code banking was very developed. Ancient borrows needed to worry about interest rates and collaterals as much as we do now. However, if a Babylonian was not able to pay off your debt because a storm had destroyed his crops he got a year-long grace period.