Ben Munster
EU will have to seize Russian assets eventually if it wants Ukraine to win, bank chief says
Policymakers need to stop worrying about the financial and legal ramifications of skimming proceeds from frozen Russian assets to arm Ukraine and must instead recognize Moscow's aggression poses a far greater risk to the European economy, a top European C...
6 months ago
ECB staff in uproar after lunch canteen downgrades olive oil
A staff mutiny over the quality of olive oil served at European Central Bank canteens was narrowly avoided after in-house caterers acquiesced to demands to bring back extra virgin options to the table.Staffers on the central bank’s internal messaging boar...
6 months ago
End of an era as Swiss central banker Jordan steps down early
Thomas Jordan is to leave his post at the head of the Swiss National Bank after 12 years, ending an era in which Swiss monetary policy was the subject of something approaching awe around the globe. “Having met the various challenges of recent years, now...
6 months ago
Italian banks brace for an uncertain future after a bumper year
One of Europe’s most anxiously watched financial centers is about to find out that what goes up must come down.Italy’s banks have had a bumper run, returning to rude health a decade after nearly collapsing under a mountain of debt and almost bringing the...
6 months ago
Mortgages to become more expensive, ECB warns
Homeowners will finally be confronted by rising mortgage payments as the delayed effects of high interest rates kick in, a top European Central Bank official warned."There are going to be a lot more people exposed to interest rates,” ECB Chief Economist P...
6 months ago
UK falls into recession
The U.K. fell into recession at the end of last year as the cost-of-living crisis continued to weigh heavily on productivity and consumer spending. The British economy shrank by 0.3 percent in the final three months of 2023, according to the Office of Nat...
6 months ago
Once humiliated by inflation, the ECB is now saying it was right all along
It’s become a cliché to say the painful surge in inflation that started in 2021 was primarily caused by the European Central Bank’s sluggish response to rising prices. But inflation is now slowing decisively — and the guardians of the euro are seizing the...
6 months ago
The EU wasted €60M on a pointless fintech fad — but the Belgians won’t let it die
A faddy EU fintech project that clocked up €60 million in development costs with almost nothing to show for it has been thrown a lifeline by the brother of Belgian EU Council chief Charles Michel.Known as the European Blockchain Services Infrastructure Co...
6 months ago
Maltese central bank governor, deputy PM face charges in snowballing corruption case
Malta's political elite is facing a reckoning as a long-running investigation into alleged corruption under former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat comes to a head.Central Bank of Malta Governor Edward Scicluna and Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne, who both...
4 months ago
Maltese central bank chief defies calls to resign amid sprawling corruption case
Maltese central bank chief Edward Scicluna pushed back against growing calls to resign after a court ruled Wednesday that he will have to stand trial in connection with a 2015 deal that has implicated swathes of the island nation’s elite.“I will abide by...
2 months ago
US political uncertainty crashes central bank retreat in Portugal
SINTRA, Portugal — When Europe’s most powerful technocrats gathered this week at a secluded mountain resort near Lisbon to discuss their deepest concerns, you'd have expected them to focus on the election in nearby France. But instead their gaze was fixed...
2 months ago
How French financial chaos could end Meloni’s market honeymoon
ROME — While all eyes are on the looming fight between the European Commission and France over EU spending rules, another high roller may soon be in for a shock of its own.Since taking office in 2022, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has defied expec...
2 months ago
Trump’s courting of the crypto industry could spell trouble for Europe
Europe is gearing up for an unprecedented Trumpian endorsement of one of the most feared technologies in policymaking circles: crypto.On Thursday, proponents of the controversial technology will descend on Nashville for a three-day conference at which Tru...
2 months ago
Bardella revives market unease with pledge to claw back billions from EU
National Rally leader Jordan Bardella broke the uneasy calm in France's financial markets on Thursday with a vow to claw back billions of euros from the EU if his party forms the next government.In an interview with the Financial Times, the 28-year-old Ba...
2 months ago