All states of the
EU that have joined the European monetary union and use the
euro as
currency have one common central bank. The European Central Bank, abbreviated as ECB, was founded in 1998 and has its headquarters in Frankfurt am Main in Germany. It is an independent institution. No government is allowed to tell it what to do or impose regulations on it. The ECB’s most important task is to ensure that the euro retains its value and remains stable. It is also responsible for issuing euro bank notes. The ECB also has to approve the number of euro coins issued by a particular state. The ECB is not allowed to give any EU government loans or privileges of any kind.
Gerd Schneider/ Christiane Toyka-Seid
