Counterparties • Eligible Assets • Frequently Asked Questions
In order to be an eligible counterparty for monetary policy operations, a credit institution must be subject to the Eurosystem's minimum reserve system and be financially sound. In addition, counterparties must fulfil any operational criteria specified in the regulatory arrangements applied by their NCB, or the ECB, so as to ensure the efficient conduct of Eurosystem monetary policy operations.
These credit institutions may access Eurosystem standing facilities and participate in the Eurosystem's main refinancing operations and longer-term refinancing operations. The Eurosystem has limited the group of counterparties for fine-tuning operations and structural operations to counterparties that are active players in the money market. For outright transactions, no restrictions are placed on counterparties. For foreign-exchange swaps, the institutions must be counterparties who are active institutions in the foreign exchange market.
The Central Bank of Ireland is responsible for reporting eligible assets listed on the Irish Stock Exchange to the ECB. Assets are considered eligible for credit operations when their inclusion in the list of eligible assets has been published by the ECB. The updated list is made public each day at 18:00 hours (CET time). In order for an asset to become eligible, it must first fulfil the eligibility criteria approved by the ECB. These are outlined in the Eurosystem General Documentation which can be downloaded here.
This single framework for eligible assets (also referred to as the "Single List") came into effect on 1 January 2007 and replaces the two-tier system which had been in place from the start of Economic and Monetary Union. The single framework comprises two distinct asset classes - marketable assets and non-marketable assets. No distinction is made between the two asset classes with regard to the quality of the assets and their eligibility for the various types of Eurosystem monetary policy operations, except that non-marketable assets are not used by the Eurosystem for outright transactions. The assets eligible for Eurosystem monetary policy operations can also be used as underlying assets for intraday credit.
| Q. | How do I become a Counterparty to the Central Bank of Ireland? |
| A. | Credit institutions must fulfil certain eligibility criteria laid down by the Eurosystem. In addition, they must agree with the terms and conditions of the Bank's General Documentation (including the Master Repurchase Agreement). Click here for more information. |
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