Guideline (EU) 2022/987 of the European Central Bank of 2 May 2022 amending Guideline (EU) 2015/510 on the implementation of the Eurosystem monetary policy framework (ECB/2014/60) (ECB/2022/17)

‘2 The minimum reserve requirements are specified in Regulation (EC) No 2531/98 and Regulation (EU) 2021/378 (ECB/2021/1). Certain features of the minimum reserve requirements are illustrated in Annex I for information purposes.’;

‘6 The ECB's Governing Council shall decide on the interest rates for the standing facilities on a regular basis. The revised interest rates shall become effective from the beginning of the new reserve maintenance period, as defined in Article 8 of Regulation (EU) 2021/378 (ECB/2021/1). The ECB publishes a calendar of the reserve maintenance periods at least three months before the start of each calendar year.’;

‘2 Access to the marginal lending facility shall be granted only on TARGET2 business days with the exclusion of the days on which TARGET2 is not available at the end of the day due to a ‘prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days’ as referred to in Article 187a. On days when the SSSs are not operational, access to the marginal lending facility shall be granted on the basis of eligible assets which have already been pre-deposited with the NCBs.’;

‘6 At the end of each business day, a negative balance on a counterparty's settlement account with its home NCB after finalisation of the end-of-day control procedures shall automatically be considered as a request for recourse (‘automatic request’) to the marginal lending facility. In order to meet the requirement in Article 18(4), counterparties shall have pre-deposited sufficient eligible assets as collateral for the transaction with the home NCB prior to such an automatic request arising. Failure to comply with this access condition shall be subject to sanctions in accordance with Articles 154 to 157. If an automatic request in the case of a counterparty whose access to Eurosystem monetary policy operations has been limited pursuant to Article 158 results in that counterparty exceeding the defined limit, sanctions in accordance with Articles 154 to 157 shall be applicable in respect of the amount by which the limit is exceeded.’;

‘1 Institutions fulfilling the eligibility criteria under Article 55 and which have access to an account with the NCB where the transaction can be settled, notably in TARGET2, may access the deposit facility. Access to the deposit facility shall be granted only on TARGET2 business days with the exclusion of the days on which TARGET2 is not available at the end of the day due to a prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days as referred to in Article 187a.’;

Open market operations shall be executed through tender procedures.’;

1 The Eurosystem shall endeavour to settle open market operations executed by means of quick tender procedures on the trade day. Other settlement dates may be applied, in particular for outright transactions and foreign exchange swaps.

2 Fine-tuning operations and structural operations conducted by means of outright transactions and executed by means of bilateral procedures shall be settled in a decentralised manner through the NCBs.’;

The Eurosystem may decide not to accept ABSs for use as collateral in Eurosystem credit operations on the basis of its assessment of the information provided. In its assessment, the Eurosystem shall take into account whether the information submitted is deemed sufficiently clear, consistent and comprehensive to demonstrate fulfilment of each of the eligibility criteria applicable to ABSs, in particular with respect to whether the cash-flow generating assets have been acquired in a manner which the Eurosystem considers to be a “true sale” as laid down in Article 75(2).’;

1 The ECB may declare a disruption of the TARGET2 system which impairs the normal processing of payments to be a “prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days” if: (a) the contingency solution as referred to in point (86) of Article 2 of Guideline ECB/2012/27 is activated as a result of the interruption; and (b) the disruption lasts or is expected by the ECB to last more than one business day. Regular monetary policy operations may be delayed or cancelled upon activation of the contingency solution as referred to in point (a).

2 The declaration referred in paragraph 1 shall be communicated via the ECB’s website. As a part of such a declaration, or subsequent to it, the ECB shall communicate the consequences of the disruption for specific monetary policy operations and instruments.

3 Following a declaration made pursuant to this Article, special measures and provisions relating to certain monetary policy operations and instruments may apply, as specified in this Guideline and in particular in Articles 187b, 187c, and 187d.

4 Once the disruption of the TARGET2 system is resolved, the ECB shall issue a communication via the ECB’s website stating that the special measures and provisions adopted due to that prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days are no longer applicable.

In the event of a declaration of a prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days pursuant to Article 187a, the following provisions may apply in relation to the processing of Eurosystem monetary policy operations. (a) The settlement of open market operations in euro as set out in Title III, Chapter 2 of this Guideline shall not be processed via the contingency solution as defined in point (86) of Article 2 of Guideline ECB/2012/27. As a consequence, the settlement of such operations may be delayed until normal TARGET2 operations resume. (b) The interest payments of such operations shall be calculated either (i) as if no delay had occurred in the settlement of the operations or (ii) according to the actual duration, whichever results in a lower payable or higher receivable interest amount for the counterparty. (c) The Eurosystem shall offset in the calculation of the interest payment calculated in accordance with point (b) any extra current account balance remuneration the counterparty is entitled to receive, or obliged to pay in case of negative rates, as a consequence of the delayed settlement. (d) The interest shall be paid out or received when the ECB issues the communication referred to in Article 187a(4).

In the event of a declaration of a prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days pursuant to Article 187a, the following provisions may apply in relation to access to the marginal lending facility. (a) Notwithstanding Article 19(6), a negative balance on a counterparty's settlement account with its home NCB at the end of the day shall be treated as intraday liquidity and remunerated at an interest rate of zero. (b) An interest rate of zero shall be applied to any outstanding credit in the marginal lending facility as set out in Article 20 granted on the day before activation of the contingency solution. That interest rate shall be applied for the period of the disruption. Any credit granted under the marginal lending facility and settled in real time on the day of but before the declaration of the prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days shall be treated as credit granted on the business day when the prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days is resolved. Interest payable for any credit received under the marginal lending facility shall be payable together with repayment of the marginal lending facility credit only after the contingency solution is deactivated and the ECB has issued a communication pursuant to Article 187a(4). The calculation of the interest rate payment shall exclude the business day(s) during which the prolonged TARGET2 disruption persisted.

No sanction shall be imposed on a counterparty pursuant to Article 154 if a prolonged TARGET2 disruption over several business days is declared pursuant to Article 187a which affects that counterparty’s ability to fulfil its obligations under this Guideline.’;

1 This Guideline shall take effect on the day of its notification to the national central banks of the Member States whose currency is the euro.

2 The national central banks of the Member States whose currency is the euro shall take the necessary measures to comply with this Guideline and apply them from 8 July 2022. They shall notify the European Central Bank of the texts and means relating to those measures by 20 May 2022 at the latest.

This Guideline is addressed to all Eurosystem central banks.