2004/47/EC: Decision of the European Central Bank of 18 December 2003 laying down the measures necessary for the contribution to the European Central Bank's reserves and provisions and for adjusting the national central banks' claims equivalent to the transferred foreign reserve assets (ECB/2003/21)

Decision of the European Central Bank
of 18 December 2003
laying down the measures necessary for the contribution to the European Central Bank's reserves and provisions and for adjusting the national central banks' claims equivalent to the transferred foreign reserve assets
(ECB/2003/21)
(2004/47/EC)
THE GOVERNING COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK
,
Having regard to the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank and in particular Article 30 thereof,
Whereas:
(1) The adjustment of the key for subscription to the European Central Bank's (ECB's) capital (hereinafter the capital key) results in adjustments to the weightings assigned to the national central banks of the Member States that have adopted the euro (hereinafter the participating NCBs) in the ECB's capital key (hereinafter the capital key weightings) as provided for in Decision ECB/2003/17 of 18 December 2003 on the national central banks' percentage shares in the key for subscription to the European Central Bank's capital(1). The adjustments to the capital key weightings and the resulting changes in the participating NCBs' shares in the ECB's subscribed capital make it necessary to adjust the claims which the ECB has credited under Article 30.3 of the Statute to the participating NCBs and which are equivalent to the participating NCBs' contributions of foreign reserve assets to the ECB (hereinafter the claims).
(2) Those participating NCBs whose percentage share in the adjusted capital key increases due to the adjustment should therefore effect a compensatory transfer to the ECB, while the ECB should effect a compensatory transfer to those participating NCBs whose percentage share in the adjusted capital key decreases.
(3) In accordance with the general principles of fairness, equal treatment and the protection of legitimate expectations underlying the Statute, those participating NCBs whose relative share in the ECB's accumulated equity value increases due to the abovementioned adjustments should also effect a compensatory transfer to those participating NCBs whose relative share decreases.
(4) The respective capital key weightings of each participating NCB until 31 December 2003 and from 1 January 2004 should be expressed as a percentage of the ECB's total capital as subscribed to by all participating NCBs for the purpose of calculating the adjustment of the value of each participating NCB's share in the ECB's accumulated equity value,