The European Central Bank (ECB) was first introduced in the European legal order on the occasion of the Treaty of Maastricht (1992). An official EU institution which is governed by EU law, the ECB of modern times differs vastly from its inception in 1998, which manifests in three main ways: monetary policy options, consideration of concerns other than low inflation in its policy-making, and its role in the Banking Union. This edited collection offers a retrospective and prospective account of the ECB, charting its evolution in detail with chapters written by leading academics and practitioners. Part 1 examines the substantive changes to monetary policy introduced by the ECB as a consequence of the financial and sovereign debt crisis by considering their legal basis. Part 2 moves beyond monetary policy by shifting to the new roles that the ECB has been called upon to play, notably in banking supervision and resolution. Parts 3 and 4 deal with transformations to inter- and intra-institutional relations, and take stock of these transformations, reflecting on the nature of the ECB of current times and which direction it could be heading in the future. The authors analyse the most salient and controversial elements of the ECB's crisis response, including unconventional monetary policy measures and the ECB's risk management strategy. Beyond monetary policy, the book further examines the role played by objectives such as financial stability and environmental sustainability, the ECB's relationship to the Lender of Last Resort function, as well as its new responsibilities in the Banking Union.

Inflation is regarded by the many as a menace that damages business and can only make life worse for households. Keeping it low depends critically on ensuring that firms and workers expect it to be low. So expectations of inflation are a key influence on national economic welfare. This collection pulls together a galaxy of world experts (including Roy Batchelor, Richard Curtin and Staffan Linden) on inflation expectations to debate different aspects of the issues involved. The main focus of the volume is on likely inflation developments. A number of factors have led practitioners and academic observers of monetary policy to place increasing emphasis recently on inflation expectations. One is the spread of inflation targeting, invented in New Zealand over 15 years ago, but now encompassing many important economies including Brazil, Canada, Israel and Great Britain. Even more significantly, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan and the United States Federal Bank are the leading members of another group of monetary institutions all considering or implementing moves in the same direction. A second is the large reduction in actual inflation that has been observed in most countries over the past decade or so. These considerations underscore the critical – and largely underrecognized - importance of inflation expectations. They emphasize the importance of the issues, and the great need for a volume that offers a clear, systematic treatment of them. This book, under the steely editorship of Peter Sinclair, should prove very important for policy makers and monetary economists alike.

Comprehensive 200-page overview of the ECB from its inception in June 1998 until the present day.

This study, completed in April 2024, aims at comprehensively presenting and thoroughly analysing the legal framework governing the definition and implementation of the single monetary policy in the euro area during the first twenty-five years of the Eurosystem’s operation. In this historical context, the focus is on the legal aspects pertaining to the definition and implementation of this single monetary policy since the establishment of the Eurosystem on 1 January 1999 amidst, and in response to, several financial and non-financial crises which erupted in the course of that period (and in particular since 2007, which marked the onset of the Global Financial Crisis). The ultimate goal is to highlight the significant contribution and the importance of the legal framework in shaping the single monetary policy of the Eurosystem, in normal times and at times of stress. The study is structured in two key chapters entitled “The Single Monetary Policy in the Euro Area: Definition and Legal Framework” and “Implementation of the Single Monetary Policy in the Euro Area in Periods of Crises”. The Epilogue (Chapter 3), entitled “Considerations on the Impact of Monetary Policy Decisions on Financial Stability in the Euro Area” discusses the interaction between monetary policy and financial stability, as well as the latest (until April 2024) financial stability conditions in the euro area through the lens of international and EU official reports, taking also into account the (spring 2023) banking turmoil.

Separation of powers is the time-tested touchstone of the legitimate exercise of power in modern democracies. This collection examines decision-making in the EU's multilayered and polycentric constitutional structure through this lens. The focus on separation of powers reveals how strong executive powers collaborate in the EU as a single source of public power, which is not sufficiently counterbalanced by parliaments or the judiciary. The collection explores 3 policy fields marked by crisis: the economic and monetary union (EMU), migration, and trade. Drawing on expertise from across these sectors, with a strong conceptual thread linking all the contributions, this important work illustrates how different branches of government co-determine each others' powers.

The book is about money, central banking and constitutions. It explains how the European Central Bank was established to ensure stability and prosperity for the euro area. The ECB was guided and controlled by a coherent European Macroeconomic Constitution. However, this model has failed during recurring crises, and the ECB has started to act as the euro area fire brigade. Consequently, it is pushing the boundaries of monetary policy, and with that challenging the accountability mechanisms and fundamentally also the democratic legitimacy of the EMU. The book sheds light on this complex economic-constitutional setting with a view on the future. The imbalance between various new operations and a single price stability objective is difficult to remedy. New objectives of financial stability, economic adjustment and environmental sustainability can cause fundamental ruptures between the ECB's formal role and its actions, and they also dangerously overburden monetary policy moving forward with substantial risks.