ECB Continues Quantitative Tightening as Assets Fall by €6 Billion

FRANKFURT, Jakartaweekly.com – The Eurosystem’s balance sheet contracted by €6.05 billion in the week ended May 15, 2026, reflecting a continued decline in the ECB’s monetary policy securities holdings amid ongoing balance sheet normalization.

According to the Consolidated Financial Statement of the Eurosystem released by the ECB, the report showed total assets stood at €6.18 trillion, down €6.05 billion from the previous week. The decline was primarily driven by a €7.88 billion reduction in euro-denominated securities holdings. Of that amount, securities held for monetary policy purposes fell by €9.36 billion to €3.51 trillion.

The move reflects the continuation of the ECB’s asset normalization policy, or quantitative tightening (QT), following years of massive monetary stimulus introduced during the crisis and pandemic periods.

Meanwhile, liquidity within the euro area banking sector remained elevated. Funds parked by euro zone banks at the ECB’s deposit facility rose by €11.54 billion to €2.25 trillion.

At the same time, current account balances linked to the minimum reserve system declined by €5.18 billion to €175.04 billion.

ECB lending to euro area credit institutions related to monetary policy operations edged up by €232 million to €25.86 billion. The increase mainly came from main refinancing operations (MRO), which rose to €13.17 billion, while longer-term refinancing operations (LTRO) remained unchanged at €12.7 billion.

The ECB’s gold and gold receivables position remained stable at €1.39 trillion. At the same time, the Eurosystem’s revaluation accounts stayed elevated at €1.36 trillion.

On the liabilities side, banknotes in circulation increased by €1.52 billion to €1.62 trillion. Meanwhile, liabilities to euro area general governments fell by €10.76 billion to €97.26 billion.

(Read Jakartaweekly.com news on Google News)