Banknote Museum of Alpha Bank, Corfu

The Banknote Museum of Alpha Bank (formerly Banknote Museum of the Ionian Bank) is a museum located in Corfu.

It exhibits an almost complete collection of the Greek currencies from 1822 to present, about 2000 items. It includes the first treasury bonds issued by the newly liberated Greek State in 1822 until the replacement of the drachma by the euro in 2002. It also includes sketches essays and printing plates of Greek banknotes. One of its rarest holdings is the 1860 "colonata". The museum was established in 1981 by the Ionian Bank and it is housed at the former Ionian Bank building designed by Corfiote architect Ioannis Chronis in about 1840. In 2000 Ionian Bank merged with Alpha Bank and subsequently the Banknote Museum was renovated and was reopened in 2005. An additional exhibit hall was added showcasing "Ionian Bank Limited" which was a British venture and the first bank to operate in Greek territory. The museum collection is considered one of the most complete of its kind in the world.

In 2003 Aris Rapidis, the curator of the museum and a historian, undertook the renovation and coordination of the exhibits to conform to world standards. In 2005 and with the participation of John Keyworth, curator of the Bank of England, the renovated exhibits were opened to the public. It is the first time that such a banknote collection, owned by a Greek bank, has been made available to the general public on a regular schedule basis. Between 2005 and 2007 about 10,000 people have visited the museum. In July 2007, an exhibition hall was constructed on the second floor of the museum. The exhibition Greek Costumes – Printed sources of the 16th-20th centuries, jointly organised with the Benaki Museum, became the first event to be showcased at the hall.

The museum contains historical material pertaining to the history of the Ionian Bank and a complete series of the last issues of the national banknotes of the Euro zone member states prior to their replacement by the euro. The manufacturing process of banknotes is included among the exhibits as well as the method of adding a watermark. A workshop also exists which details the metal plate engraving process.

Among the museum exhibits are some rare specimens of Greek currency. Exhibits include the first banknotes issued by first Governor of Greece Ioannis Kapodistrias. The Kapodistrias notes are simple and feature a rose coloured Phoenix on white background. The museum collection also contains the pre-Kapodistrian treasury bonds issued by the provisional Greek government in "pisters" or "grossia".