Forced into action, the MR bought out the company and with the DR began construction of the final section of the Inner Circle in 1879.

The station, with platforms under Queen Victoria Street and close to Mansion House, opened on 8 August 1898 as "City".

[17] In September 1960, the steeply sloping passages to the platforms were supplemented with the "Travolator", one of the few sets of moving walkways on the whole underground system.

As the W&CR was owned by the L&SWR, a mainline railway, it became part of British Rail; it was only transferred to Underground operation in 1994.

After public protest, the company changed its plans to build only a sub-surface ticket hall and lift entrance in the crypt of the church.

[17] As with the C&SLR, the high cost of property in the City, coupled with the presence of the Royal Exchange, the Bank of England, and Mansion House, meant that the station had to be built entirely underground.

To avoid wayleave payments to property owners and to lessen possible claims for damage during construction and operation, the CLR tunnels were directly under public streets.

On 11 January 1941, the Central line ticket hall of Bank station suffered a direct hit from a German bomb.

[21] In 1991, the Docklands Light Railway was extended to Bank station, following criticism of the original, poorly connected terminus at Tower Gateway.

It was unveiled by the Lord Mayor of London and is positioned on a plinth which hides a ventilation shaft for the Underground.

[24] The rest of the station was comprehensively refurbished, with decorative tiling panels based on the City's coat of arms, new lighting and replacement of escalators.

The artwork was originally completed in 1962 on Bucklersbury House, the post war office building previously located on the site.

[32] The high demand on the station was exacerbated by the narrow passageways, pinch points, spiral staircases and indirect routes between lines.

[35] TfL described the construction of the project as "intricate and complicated", with over 30 listed buildings in the historic City of London located above the tunnels.

Following consultations in the early 2010s,[40][41] and a Transport and Works Act Order in 2015,[42] construction of the new Northern line tunnel began in April 2016, and was estimated to take six years.

[43] By October 2020, the majority of tunnelling work, around 1.3 kilometres (0.8 mi), had been completed, with around 200,000 tonnes of material excavated from beneath the City.

[34][46] From January until mid May 2022, the Northern line through Bank was closed[47] – this was required to allow the existing line to be connected to the new running tunnels, convert the previous southbound platform to a new passenger concourse, as well as final fit-out and integration works throughout the expanded station complex.

[54] On 11 January 1941, during the Blitz, 56 people were killed and 69 were seriously injured when a German bomb hit the booking hall, with the blast travelling down the stairs and escalators to the platforms.

[57][58] A large number of London Buses routes serve the station complex day and night.