Radical plans to reboot Europe’s bank lending market are being studied by the European Central Bank, a senior policymaker revealed yesterday after warning that financial market tensions could wreak significant further economic damage.
Ideas for a “clearing house” to boost the inter-bank lending market, which is at the heart of the financial system, were “potentially applicable”, said Lucas Papademos, vice-president of the European Central Bank.
An ECB-organised clearing house would guarantee lending, with the intention of overcoming mutual distrust between banks. The ECB has cut official eurozone borrowing costs by 175 basis points since early October but is frustrated that market interest rates remain high.