Monitoring the European Central Bank

MECB 1: The ECB: Safe at Any Speed?

• edited by David Begg Paul De Grauwe Francesco Giavazzi Harald Uhlig Charles Wyplosz
30 Oct 1998

In the 1998 report that inaugurates the MECB series, the authors argue that the ECB is not yet prepared to meet its responsibilities. Many operational issues remain to be settled such as targeting; supervision; openness and accountability; and the respective roles of the ECB Executive Board and national central banks. Even if the global climate does not deteriorate, there are many challenges on which progress must quickly be made. Moreover, any significant worsening of global conditions may expose design flaws, previously less important, in the ECB's ability to manage a major financial crisis.