Built in 1912 for the Mercantile Bank of India, Bank Kerapu was the first stone-and-brick building in Kelantan. Its name is derived from the Kelantanese word kerapu, meaning "rough" or "uneven," referring to the coarse finish of its outer walls. The building's most significant period began on December 8, 1941, when Japanese forces landed at nearby Pantai Sabak, marking the start of the invasion of Malaya. During the occupation (1941–1945), the building was seized and used as the headquarters for the Kempeitai, the Japanese secret police. It served as a place of interrogation and detention until the British reclaimed it after the war. In 1992, it was officially converted into a World War II Memorial Museum to preserve Kelantan's wartime history and commemorate those who lived through the occupation.