Passage: February 15, 1906, marked the beginning of banking in Ethiopia when the first Bank of Abyssinia was inaugurated by Emperor Menelik II. It was a private bank whose shares were sold in Addis Ababa, New York, Paris, London, and Vienna. The bank opened numerous branches including ones in Harar (1906), Dire Dawa (1908), Gore (1912), and Dese (1920). One of the first projects the bank financed was the Franco-Ethiopian Railway which reached Addis Ababa in 1917. The bank then opened a transit office in Djibouti in 1920.In 1931, Emperor Haile Selassie introduced reforms into the banking system. The Bank of Abyssinia was liquidated the newly established Bank of Ethiopia, a fully government-owned bank, taking over management, staff and premises of the ceased bank. The Bank of Ethiopia provided central and commercial banking services to the country. However, the Italian invasion in 1935 brought the demise of one of the earliest initiatives in African banking. During the Italian occupation, Italian banks were active in Ethiopia.On April 15, 1943, the State Bank of Ethiopia became the central bank and was active until 1963.  By the time it ceased operations in 1963, the State Bank of Ethiopia had established 19 domestic branches, a branch in Khartoum, and a transit office in Djibouti.The National Bank of Ethiopia was established in 1963 by Proclamation 206 of 1963 and began operation in January 1964. The establishment of the new organization was aided by U.S Department of State emissary, Earle O. Latham, who was the first Vice President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

Question: What year did banking start in Ethiopia?
1906