ECB Wants Proof That 500-Euro Note Helps Criminals, Mersch Says

  • Assertions by law-enforcement officials aren't enough for ECB
  • Banknote policy was branded ‘shameless’ by Goodhart last year

Loved or unloved? 500 Euro banknotes.

Photographer: Ulrich Baumgarten via Getty Images
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European Central Bank officials want to see evidence that high-denomination euro banknotes facilitate criminal activity rather than relying on unproven assertions, Executive Board member Yves Mersch said.

“There are policemen who are having opinions on this matter, and also in the G-20,” Mersch told reporters in Zurich on Thursday. “I would be very happy if any substantiated evidence would be shipped to the ECB.”