FROM THE BLOG
The European Central Bank hikes interest rates after over a decade. Is this the right move for people?
On July 21st, the European Central Bank (ECB) announced that it is raising interest rates by 0.5 per cent, opting for an even higher hike than what was announced in June. Over the past few months, Positive Money Europe has repeatedly warned that higher interest rates are simply not the right solution to current price increases, as they will negatively affect people and jeopardise the well-being of our economies and the future of the post-pandemic green recovery. Why do we think so? In this blog, we answer a few questions about the impact that rising interest rates will have on people’s daily lives.
Counting on the ECB to act on fragmentation risks
The risk of fragmentation has accompanied the Eurozone since its origin. With the ECB ending its expansionary monetary policy, it has reoccurred once again. The ECB vowed to put the issue of fragmentation at rest with a new tool announced in July 2022. But its success depends on the ECB’s decision-makers realising their power and using it accordingly.
To avoid another subprime crisis, banks must help consumers to renovate their homes
The latest ECB climate stress test shows that banks could face a wave of insolvencies on their mortgage lending as energy-inefficient homes make their clients vulnerable to higher energy prices. Banks’ unpreparedness to collect data on the energy efficiency of their real estate exposures exacerbates this risk even more. This is a wake-up call for the EU and governments to urgently strengthen supervision and oblige banks to unlock finance for the renovation wave.
The ECB finally adopts green rules for its monetary policy
The European Central Bank (ECB) finally announced a clear shift away from its sacrosanct “market neutrality” principle, as it will introduce green criteria in its rules for corporate bond purchases and refinancing operations. While this is a significant improvement, the introduction of these measures remains slow and applies to only 5.87% of the ECB’s balance sheet.
Summer Reading List 2022
In need of some reading ideas for this summer? Look no further! We have compiled a list of books that the Positive Money Europe team has been reading. The topics range from the role of central banks to the intellectual history of money, including a practical guide on how to campaign. Take a look!
New research paper: The role of the EU Parliament in the ECB’s green shift
A new study traces how climate change became a topic in Europe’s monetary policy. Utilising a novel and extensive dataset, it shows how the European Parliament, early on, called for a greener monetary policy and eventually allied with members of the ECB to forge a consensus on monetary policy and climate change. The study was financially supported by Positive Money Europe and authored by Dr. Elsa Massoc, a postdoctoral researcher at the Center for the Advanced Studies of Law and Finance.
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