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3 weeks ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
The European Central Bank continued to ease policy today (June 5) with a 25 basis point cut. The bank’s deposit facility rate has thus been changed to 2%, while its main refinancing operations rate and marginal lending facility rates stand at 2.15% and 2.65%, respectively. The bank also published its revised outlook on eurozone inflation and growth figures. It now predicts that inflation will fall to 1.6% in 2026, thereby undershooting the bank’s 2% target, owing to falling energy prices and a
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3 weeks ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
The European Central Bank and the European Commission have given Bulgaria the go-ahead to join the eurozone on January 1, 2026. In its convergence report released on June 4, the ECB said Bulgaria was “within reference values of the convergence criteria” and complied “with the legal requirements” to join the eurozone. In a separate report released simultaneously, the commission wrote that it considered “that Bulgaria fulfils the conditions for adopting the euro”. The country has operated a currency
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4 weeks ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
Tweet Facebook LinkedIn Save this article Send to Print this page Central banks hoarded gold at a breakneck pace over the past three years. World Gold Council data shows central banks bought 1,082 tonnes of bullion in 2022, 1,037 tonnes in 2023 and 1,044 in 2024. A troy ounce of the metal now costs more than $3,000, having increased over 40% since January 2024.
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1 month ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
Peter Kažimír, the governor of the National Bank of Slovakia, has been found guilty of bribing an official when he was finance minister, a special tribunal ruled today (May 29). The judge, Milan Cisarik, fined Kažimír €200,000 ($225,541). The governor can still appeal the decision, but faces a one-year prison sentence if he does not pay the fine. A judge in a lower court had previously found Kažimír guilty of bribery in April 2023 and fined him €100,000. The country’s then prime minister, Eduard
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1 month ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
Central banks in countries geographically close to Russia are preparing contingency plans in the event of major failures of payments infrastructure. The National Bank of Denmark tells Central Banking that the Danish Payments Council, which is chaired by the central bank, is working on a “nationwide card payment contingency solution”. To access the system, retailers will need access to electricity, but not the internet, it says. “The goal is to ensure that all adults can pay for essential goods
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1 month ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
The governors of the German and Spanish central banks have criticised the policies of US president Donald Trump’s administration. In an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung, Joachim Nagel chastised the administration for assailing the independence of the Federal Reserve system. In the same interview, the Bank of Spain’s governor José Luis Escrivá said the wave of financial deregulation in the US was “one development that may give rise to concern”. The Deutsche Bundesbank president said central bank
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1 month ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
Hungary’s government is looking to change the law governing the central bank. Its proposed amendments would ban the Central Bank of Hungary (MNB) from creating new foundations, add a fourth deputy governor and expand the monetary policy committee from nine to 11 members. In the package of amendments, seen by Central Banking, the government said that adding a fourth deputy governor would ensure a “more effective fulfilment of fundamental and other statutory tasks”. On April 25, the MNB announced the
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1 month ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has revised its growth figures for the regions it oversees. In a report released today (May 13), the multilateral development bank downgrades its forecast for growth in 2025 by 0.2 percentage points relative to its forecast in February. The EBRD had previously revised its projection down by 0.3 points compared with its forecast in September. The bank now expects economic growth to average 3% in 2025 in the face of increased global policy
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1 month ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
The Bank of Spain has imposed a 4.5% systemic risk buffer (SyRB) on Santander’s Norwegian exposures. In a statement on May 8, the central bank explained that the lender’s exposure to Norway exceeded Nkr5 billion ($482.4 million). This meant Santander was not exempt from the recommendation by the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) that the Bank of Spain should impose on the lender a buffer identical to that imposed by Norway’s prudential authority. The central bank said it had sought the opinion
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1 month ago | 
centralbanking.com | Levente Koroes
The central banks of Albania, Norway, Poland and Sweden all made rates decisions this week. While Albania and the two Nordic countries both opted to hold, Poland announced its first cut since 2023. All four central banks cited the international uncertainty resulting from US trade policy as a factor in their decision-making. Albania: tentative holdThe Bank of Albania held rates yesterday (May 7). In its statement, the bank said its policy rate would remain at 2.75%, while its overnight deposit and
