Italy
Lessons from Italian monetary unification
This Working Paper, published November 2005, examines whether the states brought together in the Italian monetary union of the nineteenth century constituted an optimum monetary area, either before or after unification.
EU Competition Commissioner backs Italy action
The EU competition commissioner said Friday 25 November that she would support plans to take legal action against the Bank of Italy.
EU plans Bank of Italy legal action
The European Commission will begin legal action against the Bank of Italy next month over its handling of recent bank mergers involving foreign bids, Internal Market Commissioner Charlie McCreevy said on Thursday 24 November.
Tripartite protocol on banking supervision signed
Jean-Claude Trichet and Dr. Farouk El Okdah, governor of the Central Bank of Egypt, on 13 November signed a Tripartite Protocol to mark the start of a Eurosystem Technical Assistance Programme on Banking Supervision.
ECB opposes BoI reform bill
Attempts to reform governance structures at the Bank of Italy (BoI) yesterday received another blow when Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, a member of the ECB's executive board, said the government should amend some of the initiatives proposed in a parliamentary bill.
McCreevy favours legal action over Fazio
European Union (EU) internal market commissioner, Charlie McCreevy, said on Tuesday that he favoured legal action against Italy over the way the country's central bank handled two foreign bank takeover bids earlier this year.
IMF wants more accountable Bank of Italy
The International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday 2 November that the Italian government should toughen up a draft reform of the Bank of Italy to make the central bank more transparent and accountable.
Berlusconi suggests new mandate for ECB
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said on Thursday 27 October that he had suggested to fellow European Union leaders the idea of changing the European Central Bank's mandate because inflation no longer represented a problem for the eurozone.
Politicians walk out on Fazio testimony
Bank of Italy governor Antonio Fazio faced another snub on Tuesday 18 October when centre-left opposition party members walked out of a parliamentary hearing where he was speaking about Italy's 2006 budget.
ECB not yet ready to give Fazio 'dialogue' details
European Central Bank vice-president Lucas Papademos said the ECB is not yet prepared to discuss details of its "dialogue" with Bank of Italy governor Antonio Fazio.
Bank of Italy says still talking to ECB
The Bank of Italy said Tuesday 11 October it was still talking with the European Central Bank about its role in a controversial takeover battle and denied a press report claiming the ECB had concluded that Antonio Fazio broke banking rules.
Italy Senate approves central bank reform
Italy's Senate on Tuesday 11 October approved a bill to reform the Bank of Italy and the financial sector.
Bank of Italy governor questioned in Rome
Prosecutors were questioning embattled Bank of Italy Governor Antonio Fazio on Monday 10 October regarding his involvement in the takeover struggle for Banca Antonveneta SpA, the central bank said.
ECB backs Bank of Italy reform plan
The European Central Bank endorsed Italy's draft legislation to limit the term of the governor of the Bank of Italy from life to a single seven-year term on Thursday.
Fazio, humiliated, still fails to take the hint
The Economist magazine gave its opinion on the Fazio Affair in this article published on Monday 26 September. Mr Fazio's behaviour has wrecked the reputation of the central bank, hitherto one of the country's few internationally respected institutions,…
Fazio becomes butt of Tremonti's jokes
Antonio Fazio became the butt of jokes from new economy minister Giulio Tremonti recently, when he poked fun at Fazio and imitated his voice.
ECB view on Bank of Italy reform in next fortnight
The European Central Bank will give its view on the proposed reform of the Bank of Italy in the next fortnight, ECB vice-president Lucas Papademos said Friday 30 September.
Prosecutors probe Fazio for 'abuse of office'
Antonio Fazio, governor of the Bank of Italy, was secretly placed under investigation in early August, prosecutors in Rome disclosed on Thursday 29 September.
Italy should leave a horse's head on Fazio's bed
According to this article published on Tuesday 27 September, by now Bank of Italy governor Antonio Fazio's career prospects should make Kate Moss look like employee of the year. Instead, he still has a job for life under Italian law, it says.
Bank of Italy board supports Fazio
A majority of the Bank of Italy's governing board reaffirmed its confidence in beleaguered governor Antonio Fazio on Thursday 29 September.
ECB's Papademos on growth in euro area economies
In the speech 'Growth and competitiveness in euro area economies' given on 22 September Lucas Papademos of the ECB said growth in Germany and Italy has lagged behind the rest of the euro zone in recent years because of specific structural problems in the…
Italy's PM says no more can be done over Fazio
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi told parliament on Wednesday 28 September that the government would do no more to try to remove Bank of Italy Governor Antonio Fazio.
Italy considers banking supervision transfer
The Italian parliament will examine the transfer of competition supervision in the banking sector to the antitrust agency from the Bank of Italy, the daily MF said.
Communique from G10 ministers and governors
The Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the countries of the Group of Ten met in Washington, D.C. on 25 September.