Interview with Frank Elderson, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB and Vice-Chair of the Supervisory Board of the ECB, conducted by Miha Jenko

8 October 2024

You hold two high positions in the European Central Bank: you are a member of the ECB’s Executive Board as well as the Vice-Chair of its Supervisory Board. You are responsible for both monetary matters and banking supervision in the euro area. Can you explain your dual role at the ECB?

Let me clarify that, at the ECB, decision-making on monetary policy and banking supervision is separate, and for good reason. We want these two functions to pursue their specific objectives and we want to avoid potential conflicts of interest.

That being said, it is important for each side to be aware of what the other is thinking and to understand how the decisions being taken affect the other side. Let me give you a couple of examples. During our strategy review in 2021 we explicitly recognised the importance of safe and sound banks for…