ECB’s Holzmann Floats Tenfold Hike in Minimum Reserves
- Austrian policy hawk says move would spark ‘outcry’ at banks
- Other ECB officials split on whether any increase is needed
Robert Holzmann
Photographer: Akos Stiller/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The European Central Bank should increase the amount of money it requires lenders to park with it interest-free by as much as 10 times, Governing Council member Robert Holzmann told the WirtschaftsWoche magazine.
“Banks benefited significantly from unconventional monetary policy during the crisis,” Holzmann said in an interview published Wednesday. “If we’re forced to take similar measures again in the future, we’ll need reserves in our balance sheet. I therefore suggest the banks deposit more money with us without interest as minimum reserves.”