The Austrian National Bank (Österreichische Nationalbank), originally opened on January 2, 1923 but taken over by the German Reichsbank in 1938, was reestablished on July 3, 1945. The bank is a corporation with capital shares fixed by law at $150 million; 50% of the shares are, by law, owned by the government. The central bank and the bank of issue, it preserves the domestic purchasing power of the Austrian currency and its value in terms of stable foreign currencies, and controls external transactions affecting the balance of payments. It also sets reserve requirements for credit institutions.

The Austrian banking system also includes joint-stock banks, banking houses, and private banks, as well as postal savings banks, private savings banks, mortgage banks, building societies, and specialized cooperative credit institutions. The most important credit institutions are the joint-stock commercial banks, the two largest of which, the Creditanstalt-Bankverein and the Österreichische Länderbank, were nationalized in 1946; shares representing 40% of the nominal capital of the two were sold to the public in 1957.

Austria (ⁱ/ˈɒstriə/ or /ˈɔːstriə/; German: Österreich [ˈøːstɐˌʁaɪç] ( listen)), officially the Republic of Austria (German:  Republik Österreich (help·info)), is a landlocked country of roughly 8.47 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Hungary and Slovakia to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The territory of Austria covers 83,855 square kilometres (32,377 sq mi) and has a temperate and alpine climate. Austria's terrain is highly mountainous due to the presence of the Alps; only 32% of the country is below 500 metres (1,640 ft), and its highest point is 3,798 metres (12,461 ft). The majority of the population speak local Austro-Bavarian dialects of German as their native language, and German in its standard form is the country's official language. Other local official languages are Burgenland Croatian, Hungarian and Slovene.

The origins of modern-day Austria date back to the time of the Habsburg dynasty when the vast majority of the country was a part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Austria became one of the great powers of Europe and, in response to the coronation of Napoleon I as the Emperor of the French, the Austrian Empire was officially proclaimed in 1804. In 1867, the Austrian Empire was reformed into Austria-Hungary.

David Olatukunbo Alaba (born 24 June 1992 in Vienna) is an Austrian international footballer who plays for Bayern Munich. He has played a multitude of roles, including central midfielder, right and left winger, but has as of spring 2012 blossomed as a left back, a role Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes has stated he sees Alaba continuing in.

Alaba began his career with SV Aspern, his local club in Aspern, in the 22nd district, Donaustadt, before joining the youth setup of Austrian giants Austria Vienna at age 10. He rose through the ranks quickly, and in April 2008 he was named on the first-team substitutes' bench for a Bundesliga match. He also played five times for Austria Vienna's reserve team, before leaving in summer 2008 to join German Bundesliga side Bayern Munich.

He started out in Bayern's youth system, playing for the U-17 and U-19 teams, before being promoted to the reserve team for the 2009–10 season. He made his debut in a 3. Liga match against Dynamo Dresden in August 2009 and scored his first professional goal for FC Bayern Munich II on 29 August 2009. He was named in Bayern Munich's squad for the 2009–10 UEFA Champions League, where he was assigned the shirt number 27. In January 2010, it was announced that Alaba would train with the first team for the rest of the 2009–10 season, along with reserve team-mates Diego Contento and Mehmet Ekici.