EN ECB -PUBLIC  
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK  
of 6 April  2016 
on Austria’s contribution to the Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust of the International 
Monetary Fund  
(CON/ 2016/21) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 11 February 2016, the European Central Bank (EC B) received a request from the Austrian Ministry of 
Finance (MoF) for an opinion on a draft law regarding Austria’s contribution to the I nternational Monetary 
Fund (IMF) ’s Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust ( hereinafter the ‘ CCR Trust ’) (hereinafter the ‘draft 
law’).   
The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4)  and 282(5) of the Treaty on the 
Functioning of the European Union and on the third indent  of Article 2(1) of Council Decision 98/415/EC1, 
as the draft law relates to a national central bank . In accordance with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of 
the Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion.   
 
1. Purpose of the draft law  
1.1 In November 2014, the G -20 called upon the IMF to provide additional financial aid for  the countries 
stricken by the Ebola epidemic. In response to this request, the IMF extended the aid provided by 
the Post -Catastrophe Debt Relief Trust, which provides assistance in the aftermath of natural 
disasters, to include support in the event of epidemics2. The IMF has combined these funds t o 
create the CCR Trust , which  will enable l ow-income countries that have been affected by natural 
disasters or epidemics to be a ble to reduc e their IMF debt by 20% of  their quota (or more in 
exceptional cases). This reduction will be implemented by decreasing the number of their  debt 
instalments due until that amount is reached. As regards the three Ebola- stricken countries , Liberia, 
Guinea and Sierra Leone, the IMF wi ll write off USD 100 million of debt.  
1.2 Generally, t he CCR Trust resources are sufficient to provide support to the countries currently 
affected by the Ebola epidemic . However , additional resources amounting to approximately 
USD  150 million will be requi red to respond to similar cases in the future. T he IMF therefore 
appealed to its members to help with funding this amount . As regards Austria, the IMF requested 
that the Oesterreichische Nationalbank  (OeNB)  provide support  amounting to USD 3 to 5 million.  
1.3 The draft law authori ses the OeNB to transfer EUR 2.7 million from its own resources on behalf of 
                                                 
1  Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consultation of t he European Central Bank by national authorities 
regarding draft legislative provisions (OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42).  
2  See IMF Press Release No 15/34, 5 February 2015.  
ECB -PUBLIC  
2 Austria to the CCR Trust. According to the explanatory memorandum accompanying the draft law, 
the OeNB’s contribution is  to be considered a donation in or der for  the OeNB to avoid repayment 
claims against the IMF or third parties. As a result of this contribution , the OeNB will experience an 
annual loss of interest amounting to EUR 1, 350, which would have been received by the OeN B at an 
interest rate o f 0.05 % on the amount transferred to the CCR Trust3. This loss will reduce the 
OeNB’s annual income,  result ing in a marginally lower profit distribution to the MoF.  
 
2. Monetary financing prohibition  
2.1 The tasks performed by a national central bank must comply with the monetary financing prohibition 
under Article 123 of the Treaty , which is subject to certain exemptions laid down in Council 
Regulation (EC) No 3603/934. In particular, Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 3603/93 provides that 
the financing by national central banks of obligations falling upon the public sector in relation to  the 
IMF are not regarded  as a credit facility within the meaning of Article 123 of the Treaty.  Recital 14 of 
Regulation (E C) No 3603/93 clarifies the rationale behind this exemption, stating that it is 
appropriate to authori se the financing by the central banks of obligations falling upon the public 
sector in relation to the IMF because such financing ‘results in foreign claims which have all the 
characteristics of reserve assets ’. Therefore, the exemption in Article 7 of Regulation (EC) 
No 3603/93 must  be interpreted in line with this rationale5. 
2.2 The OeNB’s transfer of Austria’s contribution to the CCR Trust, as set out in the draft law, does not 
fall under the exemption in Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 3603/93 because the financing does not 
result in claims t hat have the characteristics of reserve assets within the meaning of Recital 14 of 
Regulation (EU) No 3603/93. Therefore, the ECB regards th e OeNB’ s donation to the CCR  Trust as 
a form of monetary financing prohibited by Article 123(1) of the Treaty. In order to avoid such an 
infringement of the monetary financing prohibition, the OeNB should not finance the Austrian 
contribution to the CCR Trust from its own resources , and the draft law should be amended 
accordingly .6  
 
This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website.  
 
Done at Frankfurt am Main, 6 April  2016 . 
[signed]  
The President of the ECB  
Mario DRAGHI  
                                                 
3  See the simplified outcome- oriented impact assessment accompanying the draft law.  
4  Council Regulation (EC) No 3603/93 of 13 December 1993 specifying definitions for the application of the prohibitions 
referred to in Articles 104 and 104b(1) of the Treaty (OJ L 332, 31.12.1993, p. 1).  
5  Consistently with this interpretation, see Opinions CON/2005/29 and CON/2013/16. With regard to the issue of na-
tional central banks financing of IMF quota increase,  see Opinions CON/2012/65 and  CON/2011/97.  All ECB Opi nions 
are avail able on the ECB’s website at www. ecb.europa.eu.   
6  This position departs  from the one set out in Opinions CON/2010/22 and CON/2008/41. All ECB opinions are avail a-
ble on the ECB website at www.ecb.europa.eu.