[3][4] The Fugazi Bank Building has been listed as a San Francisco Designated Landmark since March 5, 1973;[5] and is part of the Jackson Square Historic District which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.

[6] The Fugazi Bank Building was designed by architect Charles Peter Paff (1865–1942) and was originally flat-iron-shaped and standing at two stories, with a cupola at its sharp point,[3] but the cupola was removed, and a third story was later added.

[7][8] These two buildings together frame the gateway to Columbus Avenue and the North Beach neighborhood.

Giovanni "John" Fugazi (1838–1916) originally built the structure in 1909 to hold the Banca Popolare Operaia Italiana Popular Italiana Bank.

He later purchased the building, which served as the headquarters of his Transamerica Corporation (founded in 1928).