EN 
 
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 
of 10 December 2009 
on the extension of the Austrian Stat e guarantees for the interbank market 
(CON/2009/99) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 3 December 2009, the European Central Bank (ECB)  received a request from the Austrian Ministry 
for Finance for an opinion on a draft law amending the Law on the strengthening of the interbank money 
market (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 sixth indent  of Article 2(1) of Council Decision 98/415/EC of 
29 June 1998 on the consultation of the European Ce ntral Bank by national authorities regarding draft 
legislative provisions1, as the draft law relates to rules applicable  to financial institutions insofar as they 
materially influence the stability of financial ins titutions and markets. 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 The draft law amends the Law on the strengthening of the interbank money market of 
26 October 2008 on which the ECB was consulted in the same month
2. The Interbank Market 
Support Act enabled the use of certain financial in struments to revive the interbank money market, 
namely empowering the Minister for Finance to (i) provide State guarantees to a newly established clearing house ( Oesterreichische Clearingbank AG ) that borrows from financial institutions and 
lends at a market rate to eligible financial ins titutions; and (ii) act as guarantor for bonds issued by 
eligible financial institutions. The amount availa ble for both measures is EUR 65 billion. Under the 
provisions currently in force, the Minister for Finance may issue State guarantees until 
31 December 2009.  
1.2 In order to temporarily maintain the support schem e the Austrian Government intends to extend 
this deadline to 31 December 2010. In the explanator y memorandum to the draft law it is stated that 
the temporary extension of the deadline will be no tified to the European Commission for approval. 
                                                           
 
1  OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42. 
2  See ECB Opinion CON/2008/55; all ECB opinions are publis hed on the ECB’s website at www.ecb.europa.eu.  
2 1.3 The draft law does not amend the conditions under which (i) the clearing house may borrow and 
lend funds to eligible financial institutions; (ii)  the Minister for Finance may provide a State 
guarantee to the clearing house for its lending and borrowing operations; and (iii) the Minister for 
Finance may act as guarantor for eligible financia l institutions that issue securities for refinancing 
operations.  
 
2. General observations 
2.1 The ECB notes that on 14 October 2009, the Ministry for Finance consulted the ECB on measures 
to improve liquidity and increase the competitiven ess of credit institutions. The ECB adopted its  
opinion on the same on 28 October 20093. In the meantime, the measures were amended and now 
include the draft law. The Austrian authoriti es consulted the ECB on the amended measures only 
on request and at a late stage of the legislative pr ocess and the ECB would therefore like to reiterate 
that national authorities are under a duty to consult it on draft legislative provisions falling within 
its fields of competence at a point in the legi slative process which affords it sufficient time to 
examine these provisions. Only in cases of extreme urgency may the time limit be reduced under Article 3(2) of Decision 98/415/EC. Indeed, it follows from Article 3(4) of Decision 98/415/EC 
that Member States are obliged to suspend the process of adoption of such provisions pending 
receipt of the ECB’s opinion, as the adopting na tional authority should have the opportunity to 
meaningfully deliberate the ECB’s opinion prior to prior to adoption
4. 
2.2 The ECB also draws attention to the guidance provided by the Ecofin Council to the Member 
States in the Conclusions of its meeting of 7 October 20085, and to the Declaration issued by the 
Heads of State of the euro area on 12 Oc tober 2008 (hereinafter the ‘Declaration’)6. The principles 
contained in the Declaration and the Conclusions  of the Ecofin Council were endorsed by the 
European Council of 15 to 16 October 20087. In particular, the ECB stre sses that any initiative put 
in place by the competent national authorities to r estore confidence in the national segments of the 
euro area financial markets should be coordi nated and should aim to implement the common 
principles in question, in a spirit of close c ooperation with other Member States and the EU 
institutions since, as acknowledged in the De claration, significant differences in national 
                                                             
3  See ECB Opinion CON/2009/86. 
4  See the Guide to consultation of the Eu ropean Central Bank by national authoritie s regarding draft legislative provisions, 
Title IV, Section 1. 
5  See ‘Immediate Responses to Financial Turmoil’, Ecofin Council Conclusions of 7 October 2008, available on the former 
French Presidency’s website at www. ue2008.fr. The Ecofin Council recommended that: (i) interventions should be 
timely and the support should in pr inciple be temporary; (ii) the interests of taxpayers should be protected; (iii) existing 
shareholders should bear the due conseque nces of the intervention; (iv) the Gove rnment should be in a position to bring 
about a change of management ; (v) management should not re tain undue benefits; (vi) gover nments may have, inter alia, 
the power to intervene in remuneration; (vii) legitimate intere sts of competitors must be protected, in particular through 
State aid rules; and (viii) negative spill-over effects should be avoided. 
6  The text of the Declaration is available on the former Fren ch Presidency’s website at www. ue2008.fr. The Member States 
agreed to: (i) ensure appropriate liquid ity conditions for financial institutions; (ii) facilitate the funding of banks; 
(iii) provide financial institutions with additional capital resources to continue to ensure the proper financing of the 
economy; (iv) allow for an efficient recapitalisation of distressed banks; (v) ensure su fficient flexib ility in the 
implementation of accounting rules; and (vi) enhance cooperation procedures am ong European countries. 
7  See Brussels European Council of 15 to 16 October 2008, paragraph 3 of the Presidency Conclusions.   
3 implementation could have a counter-productive e ffect, creating distortions in global banking 
markets. 
 
3. Specific observations 
3.1 Relationship of the draft law to the si ngle monetary policy of the euro area  
3.1.1 Since the draft law aims at extending the scope of  the State guarantee scheme laid down in the Act 
of 26 October 2008, the ECB would like to recall some elements previously mentioned in its 
opinions on the Member States’ financial rescu e measures, including ECB Opinion CON/2008/55, 
which are important from the perspective of monetary policy. 
3.1.2 As stated in the Declaration, it is stressed that it is of the utmost importance that support operations 
conducted by national authorities do not in any wa y affect the conduct and implementation of 
monetary policy in the euro area8. In this context, the ECB reiterates its view that the extension of 
the State guarantee to cover inte rbank deposits should be avoided9, as this could entail a substantial 
distortion in the various national segments of the euro area money market. It may thus impair the implementation of the single monetary policy, whic h is an exclusive compet ence of the Eurosystem 
under Article 127(2) of the Treaty
10. It also appears crucial to en sure the harmonisation of State 
guarantee fees within the euro area and the Europ ean Union, as a level playing field is also 
essential in this respect. In this context, the E CB recalls the specific recommendations made by the 
Governing Council of the ECB on government guarantees11 which may help to ensure such 
harmonisation. 
3.2 Temporary nature of the scheme 
In line with the Declaration and the Conclusions of the Ecofin Council of 7 October 2008, the ECB 
notes that harmonisation of the measures implemented at  the national level is essential to ensure the 
integration of the financial markets within the EU, and within the euro area in particular. In this 
regard, the ECB emphasises that coordination rega rding the duration of national financial support 
schemes across the EU is of crucial importance in order to ensure a level playing field12. In 
addition, the ECB emphasises the need for national support measures to be temporary13. It is 
understood that the scheme’s temporary nature is esse ntially maintained so that the involvement of 
the Austrian State will be limited in time. 
  
                                                           
 
8  See ECB Opinions CON/2009/12, paragraph 2.3 and CON/2009/73, paragraph 3.1.   
9  See ECB Opinion CON/2008/55, paragraph 3.5, and more recently ECB Opini ons CON/2009/12, para graph 3.3.2, and 
CON/2009/49, paragraph 3.9.   
10  See also ECB Opinion CON/2008/48, in particular para graph 3.7, and more recently ECB Opinions, CON/2009/49, 
paragraph 3.9 and CON/2009/73, paragraph 3.1.   
11  Recommendations of the Governing Council of the European  Central Bank on government  guarantees for bank debt, 
20 October 2008, available on the ECB’s website. 
12  See notably ECB Opinions CON/2009/24,  paragraph 3.1, CON/2009/54, paragra ph 2.5.2, CON/2009/73, paragraph 3.2, 
CON/2009/79, paragraph 2 and CON/2009/82, paragraph 2.2. 
13  See footnote 12. 
4 This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website. 
  Done at Frankfurt am Main, 10 December 2009. 
 
[signed] 
 
The President of the ECB 
Jean-Claude TRICHET