Opinion of the European Central Bank of 14 July 2025 on the required reserve ratio of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank (CON/2025/16)
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK of 14 July 2025 on the required reserve ratio of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank (CON/2025/16) Introduction and legal basis
On 16 June 2025 the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from the Magyar Nemzeti Bank (MNB) for an opinion on a draft MNB decree amending the MNB decree on the required reserve ratio and the MNB decree on the interest rates related to required reserves (hereinafter the ‘draft MNB decree’). The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 2(2) of Council Decision 98/415/EC , as the draft decree relates to instruments of monetary policy of a Member State that has not adopted the euro. In accordance with Article 17.5, first sentence, of the Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion.
1. Purpose of the draft MNB decree
1.1 Currently, the required reserve ratio decided by the MNB is a uniform 10 % for certain liabilities . The option to choose among different reserve ratios was removed in 2023, in relation to which the ECB adopted Opinion CON/2023/36 . 1.2 The draft MNB decree aims to decrease the required reserve ratio from the current 10 % to 8 %. According to the explanatory memorandum accompanying the draft MNB decree, this planned amendment has two purposes. First, the average interbank liquidity decreased from 2024 to 2025, and the reduction of the required reserve ratio aims to contribute to counterbalancing this effect. Second, the MNB aims to maintain credit institutions’ lending capacities and preserve the role of reserve requirements in steering short-term interest rates to ensure effective monetary policy transmission. 1.3 For background, the explanatory memorandum accompanying the draft MNB decree explains that a technical amendment to the MNB decree on the interest rates related to required reserves is also
needed to clarify that the extent of unremunerated reserves remains unchanged in the percentage of the liabilities subject to reserve requirements. Thus, the MNB will continue not to pay any interest on up to 2,5 % of the liabilities subject to reserve requirements.
2. General observations
2.1 As previously noted by the ECB , Member States whose currency is not the euro retain their powers in the field of monetary policy according to national law . On the introduction of the euro, Hungary’s monetary policy would be the single monetary policy for the euro and would need at that time to be consistent with the Eurosystem’s operational framework. Credit institutions should therefore be familiar with the requirements that will apply to them once the single monetary policy is implemented in Hungary.
This opinion will be published on EUR-Lex following its adoption and in any case no later than six months following its adoption.
Done at Frankfurt am Main, 14 July 2025.
[signed]
The President of the ECB
Christine LAGARDE
Fotnoter
- 1 A kötelező tartalékráta mértékéről szóló 52/2023. (XI. 20.) MNB rendelet, Magyar Közlöny 2023/164 (XI. 20.). 2 A kötelező jegybanki tartalék kapcsán alkalmazandó kamatmértékekről szóló 49/2023. (X. 24.) MNB rendelet, Magyar Közlöny 2023/150 (X. 24.). 3 Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consultation of the European Central Bank by national authorities regarding draft legislative provisions (OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/1998/415/oj). 4 Article 1(b) of MNB decree 52/2023. (XI. 20.) on the required reserve ratio. The liabilities concerned are all liabilities included in a credit institution’s reserve base, except: (1) deposits and loans taken, the original maturity of which exceeds two years according to the MNB decree on data provision in force; (2) debt securities, provided that the maturity of the securities at the time of the issuance exceeds two years; and (3) repos. 5 All ECB opinions are published on EUR-Lex.
- 6 See, for example, paragraph 2.6 of Opinion CON/2022/38, paragraph 2 of Opinion CON/2023/6, paragraph 2.2 of Opinion CON/2023/16 and paragraph 2.1 of Opinion CON/2023/36. 7 Article 282(4) of the Treaty and Article 42.2 of the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank.