What does banco mean?
"Banco" is a noun borrowed into English from Italian, where it originally meant a bench — specifically the bench or table at which money-changers conducted business. In its adopted English sense, it refers to the stake, or collective fund, that players wager against the bank in certain card games, most notably faro and baccarat. A player who bets "on the banco" is pitting their money directly against the house's fund rather than against another individual, which makes the word useful in describing the mechanics of old-fashioned table play. A related legal usage, "in banco," describes a case heard before the full bench of judges assembled together. Today the word survives mostly in historical writing, gaming literature, and period drama, giving any sentence it appears in a distinctly old-world, candlelit-salon atmosphere. Its deeper lineage connects it to "bank" and even "bankrupt," since a broken bench — banca rotta — was the medieval sign of a failed money-lender.
nounIn gambling games such as faro and baccarat, the stake or fund played against the bank; by extension, a bet made against the banker rather than by an individual player. In law, 'in banco' describes proceedings conducted before a full assembled court or bench of judges.
- In faro or baccarat, the amount staked against the bank by one or more players collectively.
- (Law, historical) Proceedings held 'in banco' — before the full bench of judges assembled together rather than in sections.
"The dealer announced that the banco stood at two hundred pounds, open to any challenger at the table."
"She placed her whole evening's winnings on the banco and waited for the turn of the card."
"In older usage, important cases might be argued in banco before all the judges sitting together."
The plural is rare, appearing mainly when describing several separate stakes or funds across tables or games.
"The casino's ledgers recorded three separate bancos running simultaneously on the faro tables."
The word for a gambler's stake in Victorian card rooms comes straight from the Italian word for a money-changer's bench — the very furniture that gave us the word 'bank.'
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of banco
"Banco" entered English from Italian "banco," meaning a bench or money-changer's table, itself ultimately of Germanic origin (the same root behind "bench"). From this source come "bank," meaning both the financial institution and the gambling fund, and "bankrupt," from the expression "banca rotta," a broken bench signifying an insolvent money-dealer. English adopted "banco" chiefly through the vocabulary of card gaming, where it named the stake set against the bank.
How banco is actually used
"Banco" is now largely confined to descriptions of historical gambling, period fiction, and accounts of games like faro; it carries a faintly antiquated, casino-table flavor. The legal phrase "in banco" appears mainly in historical or Commonwealth judicial contexts. In modern Spanish and Italian, "banco" more commonly means a bank or a bench, so bilingual readers may encounter that broader sense.
Easily confused with banco
A bank is a financial institution or the general gambling fund, whereas banco specifically denotes the stake or wager laid against that fund in card games.
Bunco is a dice-based parlor game (and slang for a swindle), while banco is a legitimate term for a stake in faro or baccarat.