EN 
 
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 
of 19 March 2010 
on an amendment to the Law on Danmarks Nationalbank regarding authority to collect 
information for the compilation of statistics 
(CON/2010/24) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 2 March 2010 the European Central Bank (ECB) r eceived a request from the Danish Ministry of 
Economic and Business Affairs for an opinion on a proposal for a law to amend the Law on Danmarks 
Nationalbank (authorisation for the collection of data fo r use in compiling statistics) (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 the third and f ourth indents 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 Danmarks Nationalbank and to the 
collection, compilation and distribution of monetary, financial, banking, payment systems and balance of 
payments statistics. In accordance w ith 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 The purpose of the draft law is to give direct  authority to Danmarks Nationalbank to collect, 
compile and publish statistical information within  its fields of competence, and to use such 
information as necessary for the fulfilment of its  tasks, including for non-statistical purposes.  
1.2 The draft law enables Denmark to comply with  the extended statistical requirements for national 
central banks (NCBs) pursuant to Council Re gulation (EC) No 951/2009 of 9 October 2009 
amending Regulation (EC) No 2533/98 concerning the collection of statistical information by the 
European Central Bank
2 and the regulation on the European Sy stemic Risk Board (ESRB) when it 
is adopted3, as well as meeting the national needs of Da nmarks Nationalbank. At present Danmarks 
                                                 
1  OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42.  
2  OJ L 269, 14.10.2009, p. 1. This applies,  e.g., in the field of macro-prudential st atistics and the structural developments i n 
the financial markets. 
3  Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament a nd of the Council on Community macro prudential oversight of 
the financial system and establ ishing a European Systemic Risk Board (COM(2009) 499 final). 
2 Nationalbank carries out statisti cal tasks under powers delegated by Statistics Denmark pursuant to 
§3(3) of the Law on Statistics Denmark4.  
1.3 Furthermore, the draft law authorises Danmarks Nationalbank to distribute confidential statistical 
information to the European System of Central Ba nks (ESCB) and to the ESRB to the extent and in 
such detail (including information enabling an indi vidual financial institution to be identified) as is 
necessary for these institutions to perform their tasks.  
1.4 In addition, the scope of reporting agents fro m which Danmarks Nationalb ank will be allowed to 
collect information is extended to encompass all le gal and natural pe rsons operating in  the financial 
field, including issuers and holders of securities, t hose engaged in trans-border activities, as well as 
clearing and settlement institutions. 
 2. General observations  
The ECB welcomes the draft law, which provides direct  authority for the independent statistical function 
of Danmarks Nationalbank. The ECB notes that ther e are two complementary regimes for the production 
of European statistics, one set out in Regulation (EC) No 223/2009
5 and the other in Council Regulation 
(EC) No 2533/98 of 23 November 1998 concerning th e collection of statistical information by the 
European Central Bank6. Whatever the national regime, the speci fic arrangements should aim to optimise 
the quality and availability of official statistics, also  in the context of the NCB’s participation in the 
ESCB in general and its duty to collaborate with th e ECB on statistical matters in particular, while 
preserving its independence as a central bank participating in the ESCB.  
 This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website.   Done at Frankfurt am Main, 19 March 2010. 
[signed] 
  
The President of the ECB 
Jean-Claude TRICHET 
                                                 
4  §3(3) of the Law on Statistics Denmar k (Consolidated Act No 599 of 22 June 2000) delegates the collection of statistics 
in the financial field, together with the right to impose sanctions for non-complia nce, as follows: ‘In agreement with 
Danmarks Nationalbank, the Board may de legate to Danmarks Nationalbank the collection, compilation and distribution 
of statistics within th e field of finance. The Board can likewise instru ct financial undertakings to submit to Danmarks 
Nationalbank, at its request , the information referred to in § 8(1) No 3’. 
5  Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2009 on European statistics 
and repealing Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1101/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the 
transmission of data subject to statistical confidentiality to  the Statistical Office of the European Communities, Council 
Regulation (EC) No 322/97 on Community Statistics, a nd Council Decision 89/382/EEC,  Euratom establishing a 
Committee on the Statistical Programmes of the European Communities (OJ L 87, 31.3.2009, p. 164). 
6  OJ L 318, 27.11.1998, p. 8.