European Central Bank

European Central Bank (or ECB) is an institution of the European Union (EU) that administers the monetary policy of the Eurozone member states.

It is thus one of the world's most important central banks.

The ECB was established by the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1998, and is headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany.

The ECB’s objectives

 * The ECB’s objectives are laid out in Article 127 of the TFEU.
 * The ECB’s primary objective is the maintenance of price stability.

ECB interventions, both standard and non-standard, are always justified in terms of this primary objective. In order to achieve price stability, the ECB has to be able to set an appropriate monetary stance and ensure that it is effectively transmitted through to the real economy.

Relevant documents

 * : Guideline of the European Central Bank of 20 September 2011 on monetary policy instruments and procedures of the Eurosystem (ECB/2011/14)

Legislation

 * , Consolidated version of the Treaty on the functioning of the European union - Part three: Union policies and internal actions - Title VIII: Economic and monetary policy - Chapter 2: Monetary policy - Article 127 (ex article 105 tec)
 * , Consolidated version of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union - PROTOCOLS - ProtocoL (No 4) on the statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank

Related articles

 * ESCB