EN 
 
   
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 
of 23 December 2005 
at the request of the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance  
on an amendment to the draft law on the prot ection of savings concerning the Banca d’Italia 
(CON/2005/58)  
 
1. On 21 December 2005 the European Central Ba nk (ECB) received a request from the Italian 
Ministry of Economy and Finance for an opinion on a draft article that will be inserted in the draft 
law on the protection of savings (hereinafter the ‘draft article’).  
2. The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on the third indent of Article 2(1) of Council 
Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consul tation of the European Central Bank by national 
authorities regarding draft legislative provisions1, as the draft article contains provisions concerning 
a national central bank (NCB). In accordance with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank, th e Governing Council has adopted this opinion. 
3. The ECB notes that it has been already consulted twice on previous drafts of this provision and 
welcomes the Italian Government’s decision to consult the ECB again on this new draft article. The 
ECB notes with pleasure that the Italian Governme nt has endorsed most of the comments made in 
such previous opinions. More specifically, the ECB particularly welcomes the fact that specific 
amendments have been introduced to the draft artic le to introduce the principle of collegiality for 
the Directorate’s decision-making on measures related to non-ESCB tasks and a mandate of six years for its members, renewable once, similar to that one introduced for the Governor.  
4. The ECB notes that the draft article will modify the current procedure for both the appointment and 
the revocation of the Governor in the cases indicated  by Article 14.2 of the Statute of the European 
System of Central Banks and of the European Cent ral Bank: he/she will be appointed with a decree 
of the President of the Republic, upon proposal of the President of the Council of Ministers, after deliberation of the Council of Ministers, having hear d the opinion of the Banca d’Italia’s Board of 
Directors. The draft article complies with the Tr eaty. The ECB also notes that paragraph 7 of the 
draft article envisages that the Banca d’Italia’s st atute will provide for sta ggered appointment of the 
members of the Directorate to ensure a degree of continuity in its functioning and welcomes it. The 
ECB stands ready to provide an assessment of su ch aspects in a future opinion on the amendments 
to be introduced into the Statute of Banca d’Italia. 
                                                     
 
1 OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42. 
2 5. According to the draft article a Government regula tion will specify the procedure for the transfer of 
Banca d’Italia’s shares owned by entities other than  the State and other public bodies within three 
years from entry into force of the law. The ECB recalls the comments made in its earlier opinion as 
regards the need for ensuring the compatibility of bo th the financing of the planned transfer of the 
Banca d’Italia’s shares to the State with th e principles established by the Treaty as regards 
monetary financing and fiscal policies2. The ECB stands ready to provide an assessment of such 
aspects in a future opinion on the above-mentioned draft Government regulation. 
6. Furthermore, the ECB recalls its earlier comment s as regards the need for preserving the Banca 
d’Italia’s financial independence upon transfer of th e shares and to review the role of the Board of 
Director. The ECB takes note that the draft article envisages a modification of the Banca d'Italia’s Statute to redefine the functions  of such body and st ands ready to provide an assessment of the 
overall internal governance in a future opinion. 
7. Finally, the ECB notes that the draft article provid es for the abrogation of the current provisions of 
Law No. 287 of 10 October 1990 concerning the exer cise of the antitrust functions as regards the 
banking system and the transfer of the powers from the Banca d'Italia to the “Autorità garante della 
concorrenza e del mercato” (AGCM). More speci fically, the draft article provides that when 
acquisitions of significant holdings in banks and ba nking mergers occur, the authorizations of both 
Banca d’Italia and AGCM – pertaining, respectivel y, to sound and prudent management issues and 
to the competitive effects – are necessary and will be  adopted in one single measure. Co-ordination 
between the two authorities is also required.  
8. The ECB highlights that, as already commented on an earlier version of the draft article
3, while co-
ordination between authorities is highly needed  to avoid an overly complex framework for 
supervised entities, it is appropriate to maintain a clear distinction between procedures leading to 
antitrust and banking supervision decisions. Howe ver, cases might occur in which a banking 
merger would be deemed necessary on stability grou nds, although it raises concerns for its effects 
on competition. To address such issue, the draft article might envisage a provision similar to that 
contained in the draft law submitted for consulta tion in 2004, according to which the AGCM would 
be entitled to authorise concentrations upon request of the Banca d'Italia based on stability grounds. 
                                                      
2  See paragraphs 8 and 10 of ECB Opinion CON/2005/34 of 6 Oc tober 2005 at the request of the Italian Ministry of 
Economy and Finance on an amendment to the draft law on the protection of savings concerning the Banca d ’Italia.  
3  See paragraphs 4 of ECB Opinion CON/2004/16 of 11 May 2004 at  the request of the Italian Ministry of Economy and 
Finance on a draft law on the protection of savings.  
3 9. This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website.  
  Done at Frankfurt am Main, 23 December 2005. 
 
[ signed ] 
 
The President of the ECB 
Jean-Claude TRICHET