The foundation of the bank was part of the implementation of the New Economic Policy (NEP), following the monetary dislocation and barter economy during the Russian Civil War.

Meanwhile, on 11 October 1922 it was granted the right to issue the gold-backed chervonets or gold ruble that brought an end to the early Soviet hyperinflation.

Instead of independently and impartially assessing the creditworthiness of the borrower, Gosbank would provide loan funds to individuals, groups and industries as directed by the central government.

The Estonian SSR, implementing a plan prepared by a group of economists led by Siim Kallas,[5]: 362  decided in late 1989 to re-create the Bank of Estonia, which opened on 1 January 1990.

Latvia and Lithuania followed suit in March 1990, taking over operations of the State Bank on their respective territories.

Despite legislation passed also in December 1990 at the USSR level to organize the relationship between the Soviet Gosbank and the new institutions in some of the republics including Russia, relations between the respective central banks soon became conflict-ridden.

[6]: 183 In late November 1991, the Supreme Soviet of Russia authorized the Bank of Russia to assume the assets and liabilities of the Soviet Gosbank by 1 January 1992 and to act as a source of ruble liquidity for the other post-Soviet states; eventually, the latter adopted their own respective currencies, starting with the Baltics in mid-1992 and ending with Tajikistan in May 1995.