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    A digital euro for the digital era

    Together with cash, a digital euro would be accessible to all and offer greater choice and easier access to ways of paying, says Executive Board member Fabio Panetta. Since the introduction of the euro, the ECB has been responsible for preserving citizens’ trust in our currency.

Our response to the coronavirus pandemic
12 October 2020 PUBLIC CONSULTATION

Digital euro: have your say!

Like the euro we already use every day, the design of a digital euro should meet the needs of a broad range of users. That’s why we want to hear the views of the public and of all interested stakeholders on the benefits and challenges of issuing a digital euro and on its possible design.

12 October 2020 SPEECH

Complementary but independent

There are strong complementarities between fiscal and monetary policy in a low interest rate environment, says Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel. Using fiscal and structural policies more actively now will support price stability and foster central bank independence.

14/10/2020
Philip R. Lane: The pandemic and ECB monetary policy
Presentation by Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the SUERF online conference on "How to spend it? How to pay it back? EU and US Perspectives"
12/10/2020
Fabio Panetta: A digital euro for the digital era
Introductory statement by Fabio Panetta, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the ECON Committee of the European Parliament
12/10/2020
Isabel Schnabel: Pulling together: fiscal and monetary policies in a low interest rate environment
Speech by Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the Interparliamentary Conference on Stability, Economic Coordination and Governance in the European Union
08/10/2020
Yves Mersch: European economic governance: early lessons from the crisis
Keynote speech by Yves Mersch, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB and Vice-Chair of the Supervisory Board of the ECB, at the Conference “The Werner Report, 50 Years on”, organised by the Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History in cooperation with EUI Florence
06/10/2020
Philip R. Lane: The ECB’s monetary policy in the pandemic: meeting the challenge
Speech by Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the 62nd NABE Annual Meeting “Global Reset? Economics, Business, and Policy in the Pandemic”

All speeches

11/10/2020
Philip R. Lane: Interview with Wall Street Journal
Interview with Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted by Tom Fairless on 8 October
10/10/2020
Isabel Schnabel: The ECB’s independence in times of mounting public debt
Contribution by Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
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07/10/2020
Christine Lagarde: Written interview with Harvard International Review
Interview with Christine Lagarde, President of the ECB
01/10/2020
Luis de Guindos: Interview with Market News International
Interview with Luis de Guindos, Vice-President of the ECB, conducted by Luke Heighton on 29 September 2020
24/09/2020
Philip R. Lane: Q&A on Twitter
Interview on Twitter with Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted on 24 September 2020

All interviews

02/10/2020
Fabio Panetta: We must be prepared to issue a digital euro
Blog post by Fabio Panetta, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary

We should be ready to issue a digital euro if and when it is necessary, writes Executive Board member Fabio Panetta. The euro is a currency that Europeans trust. We need to make sure that it is fit for the future.

11/09/2020
Philip R. Lane: The outlook for the euro area
Blog post by Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary

Our current measures are providing crucial support to the economic recovery in the euro area, writes Chief Economist Philip R. Lane. But there is no room for complacency as inflation remains far below the aim and risks continue to be tilted to the downside.

02/09/2020
Luis de Guindos, Fabio Panetta, Isabel Schnabel: Europe needs a fully fledged capital markets union – now more than ever
Blog post by Luis de Guindos, Vice-President of the ECB, and Fabio Panetta and Isabel Schnabel, Members of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary

The coronavirus crisis makes progress on capital markets union even more important, write Luis de Guindos, Fabio Panetta and Isabel Schnabel. In the light of the European Commission’s forthcoming Action Plan, they outline priority areas for reform to foster European capital markets.

19/08/2020
Fabio Panetta, Isabel Schnabel: The provision of euro liquidity through the ECB’s swap and repo operations
Blog post by Fabio Panetta and Isabel Schnabel, Members of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary

The ECB’s swap and repo lines are essential stabilising tools in the coronavirus crisis. In a joint Blog post, Executive Board members Fabio Panetta and Isabel Schnabel explain how these tools reduce funding risks, prevent financial contagion and support the euro’s use in global transactions.

04/08/2020
Philip R. Lane: The macroeconomic impact of the pandemic and the policy response
Blog post by Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB

Summary

While there has been some rebound in economic activity, the level of economic slack remains extraordinarily high and the outlook highly uncertain, writes Chief Economist Philip R. Lane. Progress in containing the virus will be central in determining the size and speed of the recovery.

All blog posts

11 October 2020 INTERVIEW

We pursue our inflation aim symmetrically

We’ve been very symmetric in pursuing our inflation aim, Executive Board member Philip R. Lane tells the Wall Street Journal. In terms of our monetary policy strategy review, it’s important that our medium term orientation is to get inflation back to where we think it should be.

STRATEGY REVIEW

ECB Listens event on 21 October 2020

The ECB Listens event is taking place online on 21 October 2020. It will be hosted by President Christine Lagarde and Chief Economist Philip R. Lane, who will engage with civil society organisations as part of our ongoing strategy review.

Watch live at 09:30 CET.

Interest rates

Marginal lending facility 0.25 %
Main refinancing operations (fixed rate) 0.00 %
Deposit facility − 0.50 %
Effective from 18 September 2019

Inflation rates

Full inflation chart
Inflation dashboard

Reference rates

USD US dollar 1.1750
JPY Japanese yen 123.70
GBP Pound sterling 0.90395
CHF Swiss franc 1.0738
Last update: Wednesday, 14 October 2020 Euro foreign exchange rates

Multimedia

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    ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 10 September 2020

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    ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 16 July 2020

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    ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 04 June 2020

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  • ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 30 April 2020

    ECB Governing Council Press Conference - 30 April 2020

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    Christine Lagarde, President of the ECB, signing the euro banknotes, 28 November 2019

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    The ECB explains: crypto-assets

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    ECB Forum on Central Banking 2019

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    Download the ECB Art App

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    Travelogue: ECB Executive Board member Benoît Cœuré visiting Vorwerk factory in Cloyes-sur-le-Loir

  • ECB Press Conference - 10 September 2020

  • ECB Press Conference - 16 July 2020

  • ECB Press Conference - 04 June 2020

  • Youth Dialogue with Christine Lagarde - 27 May 2020

  • ECB Press Conference - 30 April 2020

  • New signature for euro banknotes - 28 November 2019

  • Christine Lagarde's Keynote Speech - European Banking Congress 2019

  • Farewell President Draghi - 28 October 2019

  • ECB Conference on Gender and Career Progression - 21 October 2019

  • ECB Press Conference - 24 October 2019

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    Financial integration in Europe, May 2018

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    Price and wage-setting in advanced economies

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    ESCB Legal Conference 2018

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    Legal framework of the Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks. ECB legal acts and instruments

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    The monetary policy of the ECB

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