Decisions taken by the Governing Council of the ECB (in addition to decisions setting interest rates)

External communication

On 19 December 2024 the Governing Council approved new arrangements for translating the boxes of the Economic Bulletin into euro area languages whereby the national central banks responsible will decide on a voluntary basis whether or not to translate them. This decision takes into account the evolving nature of the content of these boxes and aligns their translation regime with the one applicable to articles. The new arrangements, which remain compliant with the ECB’s statutory reporting obligations, will be applicable from Issue 1/2025 of the Economic Bulletin.

Market operations

Introduction of a harmonised framework for statistical in-house credit assessment systems

On 19 December 2024 the Governing Council approved a harmonised framework for national central banks’ statistical in-house credit assessment systems (S-ICASs). Most S-ICASs were introduced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to assess the creditworthiness of non-financial corporations (in particular SMEs) via a quantitative approach. As of 1 January 2026, S-ICASs will be accepted as an additional credit assessment source in the general framework, subject to compliance with the harmonised framework. The necessary legal amendments will enter into force in the next General Documentation update cycle. See also the related press release of 29 November on Changes to the Eurosystem collateral framework to foster greater harmonisation.

Harmonised approach to determining sanction amounts following errors in the reporting or calculation related to minimum reserve requirements

On 7 January 2025 the Governing Council approved a methodology for the sanctioning of infringements related to minimum reserve requirements falling under Article 7(3) of Council Regulation (EC) 2531/98. Without prejudice to Council Regulation (EC) No 2532/98 of 23 November 1998 concerning the powers of the European Central Bank to impose sanctions, the methodology harmonises the determination of potential sanctions, in particular for infringements of the requirements for reporting liabilities used to calculate the reserve base for minimum reserves or infringements in the calculation of the reserve base and/or the minimum reserves as specified under Articles 3, 5 and/or 6 of Regulation (EU) 2021/378. The approved methodology will ensure consistent and uniform application of sanctions, thus ensuring equal treatment across euro area credit institutions, compliance with the principle of proportionality in determining the appropriate sanction, and transparency and impartiality of the ECB’s decisions when imposing sanctions on institutions. On the same day, the Governing Council also approved a harmonised approach to the treatment of incorrect remuneration resulting from minimum reserves based on incorrect reporting or calculations arising from such infringements.