MNI BRIEF: ECB Invites Rome To Reconsider Revised Gold Plans

The European Central Bank has invited the Italian government to reconsider a revised draft of the 2026 budget law, “concerning the management of reserves must be construed as meaning that the gold reserves managed and held by the Banca d’Italia, as recorded on its balance sheet, belong to the Italian people”.

In a second legal opinion in a week, the ECB said that the revised draft is not accompanied by an explanatory note or a memorandum clarifying the changes. ECB president Christine Lagarde also notes that “if the Italian authorities consider it necessary to clarify the legal ownership of the gold reserves, then the Banca d’Italia must be consulted in order to ensure Treaty requirements, in particular the independence of the Bank of Italy.

On Dec 4, the Italian Finance Ministry sent the ECB a request for opinion after it revised the initial proposal sent in earlier which saw an initial opinion offered by the central bank.