Gringotts Wizarding Bank

• Type: Wizarding Bank
• Location: Diagon Alley, London, England
• Owner/Residents: Goblins (e.g., Griphook, Bogrod, Ragnok); various wizard and witch employees (e.g., Bill Weasley as a Curse-Breaker)
• Key Features: Run exclusively by Goblins, vast network of subterranean vaults, high-level security including dragons and powerful enchantments, money exchange services for Muggles.

Gringotts is the sole wizarding bank in Great Britain, founded and operated by Goblins. Located in Diagon Alley, it is an imposing, snowy-white marble building that towers over the neighbouring shops. A pair of bronze doors are flanked by a goblin in a scarlet and gold uniform. Beyond these lie a second set of silver doors, upon which a poem is engraved, warning against theft: Enter, stranger, but take heed\ Of what awaits the sin of greed,\ For those who take, but do not earn,\ Must pay most dearly in their turn.\ So if you seek beneath our floors\ A treasure that was never yours,\ Thief, you have been warned, beware\ Of finding more than treasure there. The interior opens into a vast marble hall with long counters where goblin tellers work, weighing coins in brass scales and scribbling in large ledgers. Customers access their underground vaults via magical carts that travel at high speed along a complex network of stone passageways and tracks. As Rubeus Hagrid stated, Gringotts is considered “the safest place in the world for anything you want to keep safe — 'cept maybe Hogwarts”. The bank's security is legendary and multi-layered. Lower-security vaults, like the Potter vault, are opened with a simple key. Higher-security vaults, such as Vault 713, are doorless and must be opened by a certified Gringotts goblin stroking them with their finger. The deepest, most secure vaults, like the Lestrange vault, are protected by powerful enchantments and creatures like dragons. Any unauthorized person attempting to enter a vault will be trapped within.

Gringotts is central to several key plot points throughout the series. In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Harry Potter's first visit to Gringotts introduces him to his family's fortune and the wizarding economy. On the same day, Rubeus Hagrid retrieves the Philosopher's Stone from the high-security Vault 713 on Albus Dumbledore's orders. Later, Professor Quirrell, acting for Lord Voldemort, breaks into Vault 713, but finds it empty. This failed heist underscores the bank's formidable reputation and sets a major plot element in motion. In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry withdraws money from his vault alongside the Weasley family, showcasing the bustling, everyday function of the bank. In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, security is visibly tightened following Voldemort's public return, with additional goblin guards and security checks. Gringotts plays its most crucial role in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, with the reluctant help of the goblin Griphook, plan and execute a daring break-in. Their goal is to retrieve Helga Hufflepuff's cup, one of Voldemort's Horcruxes, from the Lestrange vault. Using Polyjuice Potion, the Imperius Curse, and the Sword of Gryffindor, the trio penetrates the bank's deepest levels. They navigate the Thief's Downfall, a magical waterfall that washes away all enchantments, and face a half-blind dragon. After securing the Horcrux from the vault, which is protected by the Gemino Curse and the Flagrante Curse, they escape on the back of the dragon, leaving a trail of destruction and forever damaging relations with the goblin nation.

• The Entrance and Main Hall: A grand, marble hall where goblin tellers attend to customers at long counters. This is the public face of the bank.
• The Cart System: A complex railway of stone tunnels leading from the main hall to the subterranean vaults. Goblin-driven carts transport customers at reckless speeds.
• Vault 687 (The Potter Vault): Harry's personal vault, which contains a large fortune of Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts inherited from his parents, James Potter and Lily Potter. It is a medium-security vault opened with a key.
• Vault 713: A high-security vault that temporarily held the Philosopher's Stone. It had no keyhole and required a goblin's touch to open. It was broken into by Professor Quirrell.
• The Lestrange Vault: An ancient, high-security vault belonging to the Lestrange family. It was located deep within the bank and guarded by a dragon. The treasure inside was protected by the Gemino Curse and Flagrante Curse. It contained Hufflepuff's Cup.
• Vault 711 (The Black Vault): The vault belonging to the Black family. Sirius Black used funds from this vault to purchase the Firebolt for Harry. (Pottermore)

• The name “Gringotts” is likely a portmanteau of “grind” and “ingots,” referencing the creation and storage of metal currency.
• In the film adaptations, the interior of Gringotts was filmed at Australia House in London. The set for the underground cart system was a large and complex feat of engineering for the films.
• The dragon guarding the Lestrange vault in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is identified as a Ukrainian Ironbelly.
• The actor Warwick Davis portrayed both Griphook the goblin and Professor Flitwick in the film series, though Griphook's voice in the first film was provided by Verne Troyer.