section_path: History/Medieval
section_name: Medieval
paragraph_text: Medieval
  
  The present era of banking can be traced to medieval and early Renaissance Italy, to the rich cities in the centre and north like Florence, Lucca, Siena, Venice and Genoa. The Bardi and Peruzzi families dominated banking in 14th-century Florence, establishing branches in many other parts of Europe. Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici set up one of the most famous Italian banks, the Medici Bank, in 1397. The Republic of Genoa founded the earliest-known state deposit bank, and Banco di San Giorgio (Bank of St. George), in 1407 at Genoa, Italy.