Gringotts Wizarding Bank

Gringotts Wizarding Bank is the only bank of the wizarding world, and is owned and operated by goblins. It was created by a goblin called Gringott. Its main offices are located in North Side, Diagon Alley in London, England. In addition to storing money and valuables for wizards and witches, one can go there to exchange Muggle money for wizarding money. According to Rubeus Hagrid, other than Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Gringotts is the safest place in the wizarding world.

History
The bank was created by Gringott at some point in his life. The bank was then put at the hands of the Ministry of Magic. In 1865, the Ministry decided to leave full control of Gringotts back in goblin hands.

During Voldemort's control of the Ministry (1997 to 1998), the bank was put yet again under the Ministry. With the defeat of Voldemort and the end of the Second Wizarding War, Gringotts was presumably put back into Goblin management.

Break-Ins
Main Article: Gringotts Break-In

So far, there have only been two known break-ins of Gringotts Wizarding Bank.

1991 Break-In
The break-in of 1991 was committed by Quirinus Quirrell, who was attempting to steal an object from Vault 713. The vault, one of the a higher-security ones, held a small grubby bag, inside of which was the Philosopher's Stone. Albus Dumbledore sent Rubeus Hagrid to retrieve it while the half-giant was escorting Harry Potter to Diagon Alley. Later that very same day, someone, apparently a very powerful wizard, broke into the vault. Although he was unsuccessful in obtaining the Philosopher's Stone, the break-in shocked the Wizarding world because it was practically unheard of for Gringotts to be robbed. The culprit was not caught, though we later learn Quirrell broke into the vault acting under orders from Lord Voldemort.

1998 Break-In
The break-in of 1998 was committed by Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley. Harry, Ron, and Hermione, aided by a reluctant Griphook in exchange for Godric Gryffindor's sword, broke into the vault of Bellatrix Lestrange where a one of Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes, Helga Hufflepuff's cup, was hidden. However, when they go into Bellatrix's vault, which is stocked with all manners of treasure, they find out that the treasure has Gemino and Flagrante charms placed on it. Though burned and nearly buried in false treasures, the Trio manage to escape with the Horcrux by fleeing on a half-blind dragon that was part of the security for the vault, leaving parts of the bank in ruins.

Appearance
Gringotts Bank is a large multistoried snowy-white building, near the intersection of Knockturn Alley and Diagon Alley, that towers over all neighbouring shops. Customers pass through a set of bronze doors and then silver ones before entering the lobby; the floor is paved with marble and has long counters stretching along its length with doors leading off to the vault passageways. The vaults extend for miles under the city and are accessible through rough stone, complex and interconnected passageways by means of magic carts that are operated by goblins. Dragons and other mysterious beasts lurk in the depths as additional security devices. The inscription on the inner doors reads:

''Enter, stranger, but take heed  Of what awaits the sin of greed  For those who take, but do not earn,  Must pay most dearly in their turn.  So if you seek beneath our floors  A treasure that was never yours,  Thief, you have been warned, beware  Of finding more than treasure there. ''

When Harry Potter first visits Gringotts, he is told by Hagrid that one would have to be mad to try to rob Gringotts and that, apart from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, it's the safest place for anything valuable to be kept. Goblins are extremely greedy and would protect their money and valuables at any cost, which makes them ideal guardians for the valuables of the wizarding world. The goblins have a code that forbids them to speak of the bank's secrets, and would consider it "base treachery" to break any part of that code.

Security


Gringotts uses a variety of security systems. Most lower security vaults, such as Harry Potter's, require a key; higher security vaults require the touch of a certified Gringotts goblin. Higher security vaults may have various enchantments upon the doors. For example, the door to Vault 713 needs to be stroked by a certified Gringotts goblin, which causes it to melt away. If anyone but a Gringotts goblin touches the door, the person will be sucked into the vault, which is checked for trapped thieves about once per decade.

Dragons or sphinxes guard the highest security vaults such as the vault of the Lestrange Family. They can only be controlled by Clankers, which only the goblins possess. Another security measure is the Thief's Downfall: a charmed waterfall that the goblin carts must pass through, it cancels all enchantments and magical concealments, and throws the carts off their tracks. Some vaults use the Gemino and Flagrante charms; when any item is touched by a thief, it multiplies rapidly and burns them, eventually crushing and scorching them to death. Objects within Gringotts cannot be summoned. At times, Probity Probes are used on customers to detect enchantments, magical concealments and hidden magical objects

On his first visit to Gringotts, Harry was told by Hagrid to be cautious. Goblins are extremely greedy and would protect their money and valuables at any cost, which makes them ideal guardians for the valuables of the wizarding world. Ironically, Harry later did rob Gringotts with Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, the only known successful theft in the history of the bank, by taking advantage of a former employee's knowledge of the inner workings of the bank. It is unknown if Harry was able to resume normal business with the bank following Voldemort's defeat.

Employment
While Gringotts is largely staffed by goblins, including Griphook, Bogrod, and Ragnok, it is known that the bank does employ humans. Bill Weasley works as a Curse Breaker for Gringotts in Egypt, retrieving artifacts from ancient Egyptian tombs and pyramids. Fleur Delacour took a part-time job with Gringotts after participating in the Triwizard Tournament, apparently to improve her English skills, and wizard guards are mentioned during Harry Potter's break in. Griphook mentions at that time that the goblins resent "wand-bearer" interference in their internal affairs.

Goblins

 * Gringott - founder of the bank
 * Ragnok
 * Griphook
 * Bogrod
 * Gornuk
 * Nagnok
 * Gringotts Head Goblin
 * Unidentified Gringotts Bank teller
 * Unidentified goblin stockbroker
 * Unidentified Gringotts spokesgoblin
 * Numerous unamed goblins

Guards

 * Unidentified Gringotts Bank goblin guard
 * Marius
 * Unidentified Gringotts guard (I)
 * Unidentified Gringotts guard (II)

Humans

 * Bill Weasley - worked as a curse-breaker for Gringotts in Egypt, retrieving artefacts from ancient Egyptian tombs and pyramids, later took a desk job in 1995 to work with the Order of the Phoenix.
 * Fleur Delacour - took a part time job with Gringotts after participating in the Triwizard Tournament, supposedly to improve her English.

Competition
Gringotts has no known competition in the wizarding banking industry, and is most surely a monopoly in Britain. Given that the bank is, according to Rubeus Hagrid, the only wizarding bank in Great Britain, it stands to reason that the goblins would have a tremendous amount of power over the wizarding economy, as goblins are also the force behind minting the wizarding currency, Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts. It is likely therefore, as goblins tend to be at odds with wizards on political and social levels, that the Ministry of Magic has laws set in place to stop Gringotts intentionally regulating the wizarding economy, likely through the Goblin Liaison Office.

Weasley Vault
The Weasley family has a vault that is closer to the surface than Harry Potter's vault, and had fewer security measures. When the Weasleys entered it in the summer of 1992, the vault contained only a small pile of Sickles and a single Galleon, all of which Molly Weasley took out.

Vault 687


Harry Potter first ventured to Gringotts in 1991, when he learned that his late parents had left him a great deal of money in a vault. This was fortunate for Harry, since his Aunt Petunia and his Uncle Vernon would have surely taken most, if not all, as "proper compensation" for "opening their home" to him. While they would have had to exchange it for Muggle money, this appears to not be very difficult, as shown when Hermione Granger's parents did so while paying for her school supplies.

Harry's vault required a key for entry, and was at a moderate depth — further down than the Weasley Vault, but not as far as Vault 713. It also had fewer security measures than deeper vaults.

Vault 711
Vault 711 belonged to Sirius Black, and perhaps to the Black family in general. Sirius used gold from his vault to pay for Harry Potter's Firebolt in 1993. In 1996, it contained a "reasonable amount of gold". Given its depth, it is likely a high-security vault. Upon Sirius' death, he left all the money in the vault to Harry in his will.

Vault 712
Instead of being used as a regular vault, Vault 712 is used by the goblins as a (presumably unsanctioned) lounge, suggesting it is unused.

Vault 713
Vault 713, a higher-security vault, held a small grubby bag, inside of which was the Philosopher's Stone. Rubeus Hagrid was charged with moving it from Gringotts to Hogwarts in 1991 while he took Harry Potter to Diagon Alley, which he suceeded in doing. Later that very same day, someone, apparently a very powerful wizard, broke into the vault. Although he was unsuccessful in obtaining the Philosopher's Stone (it having been emptied earlier by Hagrid), the break-in shocked the Wizarding world because it was practically unheard of for Gringotts to be robbed, and the robbery was reported in the Daily Prophet. The culprit was not caught, though we later learn that it was Professor Quirrell acting under orders of Lord Voldemort.

Lestrange Vault


The Lestranges, a very old pure-blood family, had a vault in Gringotts guarded by a dragon and full of treasure protected by the Geminio and Flagrante curses. It, at one point, was used to store the sword of Godric Gryffindor, unknown to the Lestrange's that it was actually a fake. It also served as the hiding place for Helga Hufflepuff's Cup, one of Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes. It was this item that Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger sought to steal when they broke into Gringotts in 1998. They managed to steal the cup, severely damaged the cavernous interior and freed a dragon while escaping.

The security of this vault was even higher than that of Vault 713, as a goblin had to place his entire palm on the door, to open it, rather than just a finger, and it was guarded by a dragon. Each item in the vault was also enchanted with the Flagrante curse and the Gemino Curse, which meant that thieves would be buried by the object, which duplicated until the thief was crushed under the fake treasure.

Etymology
Gringotts may be derived from the word "ingots," which means a mass of metal cast in a convenient form for shaping, remelting, or refining.

Behind the scenes

 * According to the film adaptations of the series, Harry Potter's vault is number 687.
 * Death Eater Travers must have a vault in Gringotts, as he was holding a key while entering the bank when he encountered Hermione Granger disguised as Bellatrix Lestrange before she, Harry, and Ron robbed the bank.
 * Gringotts appears to serve the wizarding world in the same way the US Federal Reserve stabilises the economy in the United States (as similar institutions exist in other economically stable countries). It independently maintains the balance of the British wizarding economy, disallowing individual wizards, witches or groups to manipulate national financial matters for personal gain. This would also explain part of the goblins' resistance toward wizarding domination over the operation of Gringotts during the Second Wizarding War, that such interference by the Death Eater-controlled Ministry of Magic threatened the very economic stability of the wizarding community they were charged with protecting. Evidence that this may be the case appears in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, where Bogrod is seen examining leprechaun gold in disgust. Not only is such gold worthless, to allow it to continue to circulate would generate inflation, which is contrary to economic stability.
 * According to W.O.M.B.A.T tests, Gringotts may be the oldest building in Diagon Alley and the other shops grew up around it.
 * If you look closely on the 422nd Quidditch World Cup Programme, you will see that Gringotts sponsors the 422nd Quidditch World Cup.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)
 * Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4
 * Harry Potter LEGO Sets

Notes and references
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