2000/823/EC: Decision of the European Central Bank of 16 November 2000 providing for the paying-up of capital and the contribution to the reserves and provisions of the ECB by the Bank of Greece, and for the initial transfer of foreign-reserve assets to the ECB by the Bank of Greece and related matters (ECB/2000/14)

• Articles: 6

Article 1

Definitions

For the purposes of this Decision:

- "cash" shall mean the lawful currency of the United States (US dollar) or Japan (Japanese yen),

- "foreign-reserve assets" shall mean securities, gold or cash,

- "gold" shall mean fine troy ounces of gold in the form of London Good Delivery Bars, as specified by the London Bullion Market Association,

- "securities" shall mean any eligible security or financial instrument as specified by the ECB.

Article 2

Payment of capital

The Bank of Greece shall pay up 95 % of its subscription to the ECB's capital in an amount equal to EUR 97679000. The amounts required to be paid by the Bank of Greece shall be due as of 1 January 2001. The Bank of Greece shall, in due course, give instructions for the transfer of such amount, and of accrued interest thereon, on 2 January 2001, through Target (Trans-European automated real-time settlment express transfer system) or to an account of the ECB at the Bank of International Settlements, as specified by the ECB. Accured interest shall be calculated at a rate equal to the marginal interest rate used by the ESCB in its most recent main refinancing operation, and the calculation of interest shall be effected on a daily basis, using the actual over-360-day method of calculation.

Article 3

Transfer of foreign-reserve assets

1. The Bank of Greece shall transfer the same amounts of foreign-reserve assets in or denominated in US dollars, Japanese yen and gold that would have been transferred to the ECB by the Bank of Greece if the Bank of Greece had been a NCB of a Member State without a derogation on 1 January 1999.

2. The Bank of Greece shall transfer to the ECB a portfolio of securities and cash in or denominated in US dollars or Japanese yen within deviation bands around the modified durations of the tactical benchmark portfolios as are specified by the ECB, and in conformity with such credit limits as are specified by the ECB.

3. The settlement dates for securities and cash to be transferred to the ECB shall be specified by the ECB, and in due course the Bank of Geece shall give instructions for the transfer of the ownership of securities and for the transfer of cash to the ECB on the settlement dates. The value of all securities shall be calculated on the basis of prices designated by the ECB, and the Bank of Greece shall transfer securities and cash to such accounts as are specified by the ECB.

4. The Bank of Greece shall transfer gold on such dates, to such accounts and at such locations as are specified by the ECB.

Article 4

Denomination, remuneration and maturity of the claim equivalent to the Bank of Greece's contribution, and transtional regime of foreign-exchange losses

1. Subject to the specifications provided for in this Decision, the provisions of Articles 3 and 4 of Guideline ECB/2000/15, attached as Annex to this Decision, shall be applicable with effect from 1 January 2001 to the claim required to be credited by the ECB to the Bank of Greece in accordance with Article 30.3 of the Statute.

2. For purposes of calculating the claim required to be credited by the ECB to the Bank of Greece in accordance with Article 30.3 of the Statute and Article 3.1 of Guideline ECB/2000/15, the aggregate euro equivalent value of the foreign-reserve assets transferred by the Bank of Greece shall be calculated on the basis of the exchange rates between the euro and the US dollar or Japanese yen established as a result of the daily concertation teleconference procedure on 29 December 2000 among those central banks that participate in such procedure and, in the case of gold, on the basis of the US dollar price of gold per fine troy ounce established in the London gold fixing at 10.30 a.m., London time, on 29 December 2000. The amount so calculated shall be confirmed by the ECB to the Bank of Greece as soon as possible on 29 December 2000.

Article 5

Contribution to reserves and provisions of the ECB

1. In accordance with Article 49.2 of the Statute, the Bank of Greece shall contribute to the reserves of the ECB, to those provisions equivalent to reserves, and to the amount still to be appropriated to the reserves and provisions corresponding to the balance of the profit and loss account as at 31 December of the financial year ending 31 December 2000. The sum to be contributed by the Bank of Greece shall be determined by multiplying the amount of the reserves, as defined above and as stated in the aprpoved balance sheet of the ECB as at 31 December 2000, by the ratio between the number of shares subscribed by the Bank of Greece and the number of shares already paid up by the other central banks of Member States without a derogation.

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1 above, "reserves of the ECB" and "provisions equivalent to reserves" shall, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, include the general reserve fund of the ECB and the provisions equivalent to reserves for valuation losses with respect to foreign-exchange rates and market prices.

3. The amounts required to be paid by the Bank of Greece in accordance with paragraph 1 shall be due as of 1 January 2001. The ECB shall, in due course, calculate and confirm to the Bank of Greece the amounts required to be contributed by the Bank of Greece to the ECB in accordance with paragraph 1, and the Bank of Greece shall give instructions for the transfer to the ECB on 30 March 2001 of any such amounts, and of accrued interest thereon, through Target or to an account of the ECB at the Bank for International Settlements, as specified by the ECB. Accrued interest shall be calculated from 1 January through 30 March 2001 at a rate equal to the marginal interest rate used by the ESCB in its most recent main refinancing operation, and the calcuation of interest shall be effected on a daily basis, using the actual over-360-day method of calculation.

Article 6

Final provisions

Guideline ECB/2000/15 is hereby attached as Annex to this Decision for reasons of transparency.

This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 16 November 2000.

The President of the ECB

Willem F. Duisenberg

(1) OJ L 167, 7.7.2000, p. 19.

(2) OJ L 139, 11.5.1998, p. 30.

(3) OJ L 125, 19.5.1999, p. 33.

(4) OJ L 171, 17.6.1998, p. 33.

(5) OJ L 8, 14.1.1999, p. 33.

(6) OJ L 110, 28.4.1999, p. 33.