Opinion of the European Central Bank of 3 April 2009 at the request of the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance on a draft law on the increase of Italy’s quota with the International Monetary Fund (CON/2009/33)
Date: 2009-04-03
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: International Monetary Fund, Italy, international monetary system, national law

EN 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 3 April 2009 

at the request of the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance on a draft law on the increase of 

Italy’s quota with the International Monetary Fund 

(CON/2009/33) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On  13  March  2009,  the  European  Central  Bank  (ECB)  received  a  request  from  the  Italian  Ministry  of 

Economy  and  Finance  (MEF)  for  an  opinion  on  a  draft  law  on  the  increase  of  Italy’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  Banca  d’Italia.  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  On  28  April  2008  the  Board  of  Governors  of  the  International  Monetary  Fund  (IMF)  adopted 

Resolution No 63-2 on the ‘Reform of Quota and Voice’ and on 5 May 2008 it adopted Resolution 

No 63-3 amending the Articles of Agreement of the IMF to expand its investment authority. When 

the  first  of  the  proposed  amendments  becomes  effective  (i.e.  when  it  has  been  accepted  by three 

fifths of the members of the IMF having 85 % of the total voting power), there could be an increase 

in the IMF quota for up to 54 countries, including Italy, provided that, within 30 days of the entry 

into  effect  of  the  amendment,  each  of  those  countries  both  consents  to  the  increase  and  pays  the 

amount of their increased quota to the IMF. As stated in the explanatory report on the draft law, it 

is expected that, as in the case of previous amendments of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, Italy’s 

declaration of acceptance will be signed by the President of the Republic. 

1.2  Following the increase of 11.5 % of the total quotas decided by the IMF’s Board of Governors in 

April  2008,  the  objective  of  the  draft  law  –  as  regards  the  part  of  it  which  refers  to  the  Banca 

d’Italia  and  is  therefore  the  subject  of  this  opinion  –  is  to  authorise  the  MEF  to  pay,  by  having 

recourse to the Banca d’Italia, for the proposed increase in Italy’s IMF quota from 7 055.5 million 

1  

OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42.  

 
 
 
 
                                                 
special drawing rights (SDRs) to 7 882.3 million SDRs. As stated in the explanatory report on the 

draft law, ‘it is envisaged that the necessary funds will be obtained from the Banca d’Italia’. 

2. 

General observations  

2.1  Article  4  of  the  draft  law  provides  that  the  MEF  is  authorised  to  make  the  payments,  having 

recourse to the Banca d’Italia, and has the right to grant the Banca d’Italia the necessary guarantees 

to cover any risk connected with the payment made by it or made ‘using their liquidity’ in the name 

of and on behalf of the State. In this respect, the ECB notes that it is not clear which subject the 

word ‘their’ refers to. For the sake of linguistic accuracy and legal clarity, it would be advisable to 

draft the provision in Article 4 of the draft law more precisely. 

2.2  The ECB also notes that, according to the explanatory report on the draft law, such payments do 

not entail negative effects for the Treasury or for Italy’s balance sheet as they will constitute (i) in 

part  a  credit  with  the  IMF  that  could  only  affect  Italy’s  balance  sheet  for  the  purpose  of 

reimbursing the Banca d’Italia in the event of the liquidation of the IMF and losses related to such 

liquidation,  and  (ii)  in  part  serve  to  constitute  a  line  of  credit  in  favour  of  the  IMF  in  a  current 

account specially opened with the Banca d’Italia. 

2.3  As recently expressed in a very similar case2, the ECB reminds the MEF that the tasks performed 

by the Banca d’Italia must comply with the monetary financing prohibition under Article 101 of the 

Treaty and Council Regulation (EC) No 3603/93 of 13 December 1993 specifying the definitions 

for  the  application  of  the  prohibitions  referred  to  in  Articles  104  [now  101]  and  104b(1)  [now 
Article 103(1)] of the Treaty3. Pursuant to Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 3603/93, the financing 

by  national  central  banks  of  obligations  falling  upon  the  public  sector  vis-à-vis  the  IMF  is  not 

regarded as a credit facility within the meaning of Article 101 of the Treaty. Therefore, the ECB 

notes that any possible payment by the Banca d’Italia of the proposed increase in Italy’s IMF quota 

complies  with  Article  7  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  3603/93  and  does  not  infringe  the  monetary 

financing prohibition. 

This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website.  

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 3 April 2009. 

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Jean-Claude TRICHET 

2  

3  

See ECB Opinion CON/2009/5 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. 
OJ L 332, 31.12.1993, p. 1. 

2