EN 
 
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 
of 22 January 2009 
at the request of the Austrian Ministry of Finance 
on a draft Federal law on the increase of Austria’s quota with the International Monetary Fund 
(CON/2009/5) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 22 December 2008, the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from the Austrian Ministry 
of Finance for an opinion on a draft Federal law on the increase of Austria’s quota  with the International 
Monetary Fund (hereinafter the ‘draft law’). 
The ECB’s competence to deliver an  opinion is based on Article 105(4) of the Treaty establishing the 
European Community and the third indent of Article 2(1) of Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 
on the consultation of the European Central Bank by  national authorities regarding draft legislative 
provisions1, as the draft law relates to the Oesterreichisc he Nationalbank (OeNB). In accordance with the 
first sentence of Article 17.5 of the Rules of Pro cedure of the European Central Bank, the Governing 
Council has adopted this opinion. 
 
1.  Purpose of the draft law 
On 28 April 2008, the Board of Governors of the Inte rnational Monetary Fund (IMF) adopted a resolution 
on ‘Reform of Quota and Voice’ proposing an amendmen t to the IMF’s Articles of Agreement. When the 
proposed amendment becomes effective (i.e. only after it has been accepted by three fifths of the 
members of the IMF having 85 % of the total voting pow er), there could be an increase in the IMF quota 
for up to 54 countries, including Austria, provided that each of those countries, within 30 days of the entry into effect of the amendment, both consents to the increase and pays the amount of the increased 
quota to the IMF. The objective of the draft law is to authorise the OeNB to pay for the proposed increase in Austria’s IMF quota , which would be an incr ease of 241.6 million special drawing rights (SDRs) 
thereby bringing Austria’s quota to a total of 2 1 13.9 million SDRs. As stated in the explanatory 
memorandum to the draft law, the OeNB paid th e initial Austrian quota in 1971 and has paid all 
subsequent quota increases, meaning that it should also pay the latest proposed increase in quota. The 
payment would result in an exchange of assets and liabilities on the balance sheet of the OeNB, which 
would acquire the IMF quota in return for the said 241.6 million SDRs.  
 
                                                 
1  OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42.  
2. General observations  
The ECB reminds the Ministry of Fina nce that the t asks perfor med by  the OeNB must com ply with the  
monetary  financing pro hibition under A rticle 101 of the Treaty  and Council Reg ulation (EC) No 360 3/93 
of 13 December 1993 spe cifying the definitions for  the application of the pr ohibiti ons referred to in  
Articles 104 and 104 b(1) of the Treaty2. As stated in the explan atory  memorandum  to the draft law, 
pursuant to Article 7 of Co uncil Regulation (EC) No 3603/ 93, the financing b y national central banks o f 
obligations falling upon the public sect or vis-à-vis the IM F is not regarded as a credit f acility within the  
meaning of Article 101 o f the Treaty . Therefore, the ECB notes that an y payment by  the OeNB of the 
proposed i ncrease in Austria’ s IMF quota com plies w ith Article 7 of  Regulation (EC) No 3603/ 93 and 
does not infri nge the m onetary  financing prohi bition. 
 
This opini on will be publis hed on t he ECB’s website.  
 
 
Done at Frankfurt am  Main, 22  January 200 9. 
 
[signed ] 
 
The President of the ECB 
Jean-Claude TRICHET 
                                                 
2  OJ L 332, 31.12 .1993, p . 1. 
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