Opinion of the European Central Bank of 7 May 2013 on strengthening Banca Naţională a României’s institutional role and independence (CON/2013/31)
Date: 2013-05-07
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: Romania, central bank, euro, monetary integration, money, national law

EN 

ECB-PUBLIC 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 7 May 2013 

on strengthening Banca Naţională a României’s institutional role and independence 

(CON/2013/31) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On  18  April  2013,  the  European  Central  Bank  (ECB)  received  a  request  from  Banca  Naţională  a 

României  (BNR)  for  an  opinion  on  draft  amendments  to  the  Romanian  Constitution  concerning  BNR 

(hereinafter the ‘draft amendments’). 

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  first  and  third  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 amendments relate to currency matters and the national 

central  bank.  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 amendments 

BNR  has  prepared  a  set  of  proposals  in  the  context  of  the  revision  of  the  Romanian  Constitution.  For 
institutional and functional stability purposes, the Statute of Banca Naţională a României2 (hereinafter the 
‘Statute  of  BNR’)  will  be  included  in  the  category  of  organic  laws3  and  BNR’s  institutional  role  and 

independence will be enshrined in the Constitution. Furthermore, the draft amendments aim to ensure the 

flexibility of the national legislation with regard to further developments at the European level and to the 

adoption  of  the  euro  by  providing  for  the  possibility  of  regulating  by  organic  law  the  transfer  of  BNR 

tasks to the ECB and the introduction of the euro as legal tender. 

2. 

General observations 

Due to the specific legislative stages in the national Constitution revision process, the consulting authority 

invokes reasons of extreme urgency and asks the ECB to deliver its opinion by 7 May 2013. The ECB 

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3  

OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42. 
Law  312/2004  on  the  Statute  of  Banca  Naţională  a  României,  Monitorul  Oficial  al  României,  Part  I  No  582, 
30 June 2004. 
Organic laws are laws which are adopted by the Romanian Parliament in areas of high importance for the functioning of 
the State and they cannot be subject to legislative delegation to the Romanian Government. Organic laws are adopted by 
a majority of both Chambers of Parliament. 

 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
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draws  the  consulting  authority’s  attention  to  the  second  sentence  of  Article  4  of  Decision  98/415/EC 

pursuant  to  which  the  ECB  must  be  consulted  ‘at  an  appropriate  stage’  in  the  legislative  process.  This 

implies that the consultation should take place at a point in the legislative process that affords the ECB 

sufficient time to carefully examine the draft legislative provisions and to adopt its opinion in the required 

language versions and which also enables the relevant national authorities to take the ECB’s opinion into 

consideration before the provisions are adopted. 

3. 

Specific observations 

3.1  The  draft  amendments  provide  that  BNR  is  the  central  bank  of  Romania,  an  independent  public 

institution  and  a  member  of  the  European  System  of  Central  Banks,  and  that  its  tasks, 

administration and functioning are regulated by law, in accordance with the treaties Romania has 

signed. The ECB welcomes the introduction of these provisions in the Romanian Constitution. 

3.2  The  ECB  also  welcomes  the  enhanced  institutional  and  functional  stability,  as  well  as  legal 
certainty, provided by the inclusion of the Statute of BNR in the category of organic laws3. 

3.3  The draft amendments introduce a constitutional provision specifying that an organic law may be 
used to regulate: (a) the transfer of BNR’s tasks to the ECB (draft Article 1371(4)(a)); and (b) the 

replacement  of  the  national  currency  with  the  euro  and  the  circulation  thereof  (draft 
Article 1371(4)(b)). The ECB notes that the draft Article 1371(4)(a) is not clear as to which tasks 

are intended to be transferred from BNR to the ECB or when this transfer would take place. The 
draft Article 1371(4)(a) appears to enable the Parliament to make the legislative adjustments to the 
Statute of BNR that are specified in the ECB’s Convergence Report4 and are necessary to ensure 
full integration of BNR into the Eurosystem5. While such adjustments to the Statute of BNR should 

be adopted as soon as possible, they need only to enter into force on the date Romania adopts the 
euro6. The scope of application of a possible organic law in accordance with Article 1371(4)(a) of 

the draft amendments should therefore be clarified. 

3.4 

In addition, changes to the draft Article 1371(1) are necessary in order to ensure, upon adoption of 

the  euro  by  Romania,  that  the  Constitution  is  compatible  with  the  Treaty  and  the  Statute  of  the 

European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank (hereinafter ‘Statute of the 
ESCB’). The draft Article 1371(1) provides that BNR has the exclusive right to issue currency in 

the form of banknotes and coins in Romania. This provision is not consistent with the Treaty and 

the Statute of ESCB as it neither recognises the ECB’s exclusive right to authorise the issue of euro 
banknotes within the Union nor provides for a plurality of issuers7. In order to address this concern, 

the  ECB  suggests  inserting  references  to  the  Treaty  and  the  Statute  of  the  ESCB  in  the  draft 
Article 1371(1).  In  particular,  Article  1371(1)  should  state  that  BNR  shall  have  the  right,  in 

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5  
6  
7  

See the ECB’s Convergence Report, 2012, p. 253. 
See the ECB’s Convergence Report, 2012, p. 32. 
See the ECB’s Convergence Report, 2012, p. 32. 
See paragraph 3 of Opinion CON/2005/38. All ECB opinions are published on the ECB’s website at www.ecb.europa.eu. 

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accordance with the Treaty, to issue currency in the form of banknotes and coins. The ECB notes 

that such provisions, recognising that the ECB has the right to authorise the issue of euro banknotes 

and  to  approve  the  volume  of  issuance  of  euro  coins,  and  that  the  ECB  and  the  national  central 

banks of the Member States whose currency is the euro may issue euro banknotes, should enter into 

force on the date on which Romania adopts the euro. 

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

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 7 May 2013. 

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Mario DRAGHI 

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