
The ECB Podcast
The European Central Bank Podcast – bringing you insights into the world of economics and central banking.
Our hosts Paul Gordon and Stefania Secola talk to experts about the topics and trends that matter to the eurozone economy today.
The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank.
Latest episodes

Aug 11, 2022 • 27min
Let's get digital on inflation, climate and the euro
How can digitalisation help central banks? And what role does cutting-edge technology play? In this episode, host Katie Ranger talks about this and more with Claudia Plattner, our head of information systems.
The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank.
Published on 11 August 2022 and recorded on 3 August 2022.
In this episode:
03:30 – Women in IT
Claudia’s personal experience as a woman working in IT and how we can make sure that female talent is valued in this field.
08:01 – What is nowcasting?
How digital tools help us keep prices stable and monitor how the economy is doing, and why real-time data are so important for central banks.
14:05 – Digitalisation in the fight against climate change
Using information technology to make the financial system greener and how we use data to monitor climate and environmental risks.
18:10 – Claudia’s thoughts on a digital euro
Why we need a digital euro and how it can help Europeans keep up with the pace of digitalisation.
21:21 – Our guest’s hot tips
ECB Scholarship for Women
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/careers/what-we-offer/wecs/html/index.en.html
Girls Who Code
https://girlswhocode.com/
The ECB Podcast: Greening the financial system: milestones in our climate change journey, 9 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod220709_episode36.en.html
Climate change and the ECB
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/ecb/climate/html/index.en.html
A digital euro
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/paym/digital_euro/html/index.en.html
European Central Bank website
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html

Jul 23, 2022 • 29min
What interest rate hikes mean for you, the economy and inflation
What are interest rates? How do they work? And what do higher rates mean for people, the economy and inflation?
Our host, Katie Ranger, puts these questions to expert Gabriel Glöckler on The ECB Podcast.
The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank.
Published on 23 July 2022 and recorded on 13 July 2022 and 22 July 2022.
In this episode:
01:50 – The basics: what are interest rates?
What interest rates are and why we need them to compensate for different risks.
06:34 – How do interest rates work?
The role interest rates play in determining the everyday choices we make with our money and how the ECB’s decisions affect market interest rates.
13:20 – Are rates the same across the whole euro area?
Why it’s important that our monetary policy decisions reach all parts of the euro area in a reasonably even manner.
17:40 – How do higher rates affect people, the economy and inflation?
The concrete impact of higher rates on people’s daily lives and on economic activity, and how raising rates can help bring down inflation.
20:20 – Raising rates in times of war and at the tail end of a pandemic.
The challenges the current environment poses for interest rates and the role higher rates play in shaping people’s inflation expectations. The importance of signalling our commitment to normalising our monetary policy.
25:31 – Our guest’s hot tip
Additional material:
Press release: monetary policy decisions, 21 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ecb.mp220721~53e5bdd317.en.html
Our monetary policy statement at a glance, 21 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/visual-mps/2022/html/mopo_statement_explained_july.en.html
Explainer: We have raised interest rates. What does that mean for you?
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/ecb/educational/explainers/tell-me-more/html/interest_rates.en.html
Blog post by Christine Lagarde: Ensuring price stability, 23 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/blog/date/2022/html/ecb.blog220723~c2b1d4b654.en.html
The ECB Podcast: President Lagarde presents the latest monetary policy decisions, 21 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod220721_episode37.en.html
The ECB Podcast: What is behind current inflation spikes?, 6 October 2021
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod210925_episode22.en.html
European Central Bank
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html
You can also listen to The ECB Podcast on SoundCloud, Spotify, Deezer, Stitcher, YouTube, Amazon Music and many more: pod.link/ecbpodcast

Jul 21, 2022 • 15min
President Lagarde presents the latest monetary policy decisions – 21 July 2022
Today our Governing Council decided on monetary policy, determining what’s needed to achieve stable prices in the euro area.
Listen to President Christine Lagarde present today’s decisions. The statement also covers:
- how the economy is performing
- how we expect prices to develop
- the risks to the economic outlook
- the dynamics behind financial and monetary conditions
Published and recorded during our press conference on 21 July 2022.
Additional material:
Our monetary policy statement at a glance, 21 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/visual-mps/2022/html/mopo_statement_explained_july.en.html
Christine Lagarde, Luis de Guindos: Monetary policy statement (with Q&A), 21 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/2022/html/ecb.is220721~51ef267c68.en.html
Monetary policy decisions, 21 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ecb.mp220721~53e5bdd317.en.html
Combined monetary policy decisions and statement, 21 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/shared/pdf/ecb.ds220721~de2b7f0639.en.pdf
Press release: The Transmission Protection Instrument, 21 July 2022 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ecb.pr220721~973e6e7273.en.html
Explainer: We have raised interest rates. What does that mean for you?
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/ecb/educational/explainers/tell-me-more/html/interest_rates.en.html
European Central Bank
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html
You can also listen to The ECB Podcast on SoundCloud, Spotify, Deezer, Stitcher, YouTube, Amazon Music and many more pod.link/ecbpodcast

Jul 9, 2022 • 33min
Greening the financial system: milestones in our climate change journey
What did our climate stress test show? How will we integrate climate change into monetary policy?
Our host Katie Ranger puts these and other questions to Executive Board member Frank Elderson on the ECB Podcast.
The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank.
Published on 9 July 2022 and recorded on 7 July 2022.
In this episode:
01:09 – Our first ever banking supervision climate stress test
What we looked at in our supervisory climate stress test and an overview of the transition risks and physical risks facing banks.
05:32 – Results of the climate stress test for banks
How prepared banks are to tackle climate-related and environmental risks and what we learnt while performing the stress test.
18:58 – What are our next steps?
How the results of the climate stress test will feed into other banking supervision activities and how this will help banks integrate climate-related risks into their businesses.
20:32 – Incorporating climate change into our monetary policy
How we are turning our commitment to fighting climate change into real action and how we intend to move from being market-neutral to carbon-neutral.
25:11 – Why do we, as a central bank, need to play a role in tackling climate change?
How we can contribute within our mandate to the fight against climate change.
30:50 – Our guest’s hot tip
Additional material:
Press release: ECB takes further steps to incorporate climate change into its monetary policy operations, 4 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ecb.pr220704~4f48a72462.en.html
ECB climate agenda 2022, 4 July 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ecb.pr220704_annex~cb39c2dcbb.en.pdf
Press release: Banks must sharpen their focus on climate risk, ECB supervisory stress test shows, 8 July 2022
https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ssm.pr220708~565c38d18a.en.html
Climate risk stress tests – Final results, 8 July 2022
https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/ecb/pub/pdf/annex/ssm.pr220708_annex2.en.pdf
The ECB Podcast: Time to act now: results of the economy-wide climate stress test, 22 September 2021
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod210922_episode20.en.html
The ECB Podcast: Tackling climate change as a central bank: Between motivation, obligation and limitation, 12 May 2021
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod210512_episode16.en.html
The ECB Podcast: Climate change and the role of central banks, 3 March 2020
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod200303_episode5.en.html
Climate change and the ECB
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/ecb/climate/html/index.en.html
Climate change and banking supervision
https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/about/climate/html/index.en.html
European Central Bank
www.ecb.europa.eu
European Banking Supervision
www.www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu

Jun 9, 2022 • 16min
President Lagarde presents the latest monetary policy decisions – 9 June 2022
Today our Governing Council decided on monetary policy, determining what’s needed to achieve stable prices in the euro area.
Listen to President Christine Lagarde present today’s decisions. The statement also covers:
- how the economy is performing
- how we expect prices to develop
- the risks to the economic outlook
- the dynamics behind financial and monetary conditions
Published and recorded during our press conference on 9 June 2022.
Additional material:
Our monetary policy statement at a glance, 9 June 2022 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/visual-mps/2022/html/mopo_statement_explained_june.en.html
Christine Lagarde, Luis de Guindos: Monetary policy statement (with Q&A), 9 June 2022 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/2022/html/ecb.is220609~abe7c95b19.en.html
Monetary policy decisions, 9 June 2022 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ecb.mp220609~122666c272.en.html
Combined monetary policy decisions and statement, 9 June 2022 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/shared/pdf/ecb.ds220609~7434064bed.en.pdf
Macroeconomic projections, 9 June 2022 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/projections/html/index.en.html
European Central Bank
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html
You can also listen to The ECB Podcast on SoundCloud, Spotify, Deezer, Stitcher, YouTube, Amazon Music and many more pod.link/ecbpodcast

Jun 1, 2022 • 33min
Financial stability amid Russia’s war in Ukraine
How is financial stability doing in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? What risks are we keeping an eye on, for instance in the crypto-asset and housing markets?
Our host Katie Ranger puts these and other questions to our financial stability experts Tamarah Shakir and John Fell on The ECB Podcast.
The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank.
Published on 1 June 2022 and recorded on 27 May 2022.
In this episode:
05:55 – How is financial stability faring in the current uncertain environment?
Why financial stability conditions have worsened, what the main causes of this are and how the war is affecting the financial system.
13:54 – How is high inflation affecting financial stability?
What impact higher prices are having on the financial system, and how inflation affects both people’s ability to repay debts and the financing role of markets.
20:10 – What’s going on in the housing market?
Why house prices have been rising and what risks might emerge as a result.
24:05 – Why are crypto-assets a risk to financial stability?
The current state of crypto-assets, and how other developments might increase the risks they pose to the financial system.
30:02 – Our guests’ hot tips
Our financial experts John Fell and Tamarah Shakir share their book and podcast recommendations.
Additional material:
Financial Stability Review, May 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/financial-stability/fsr/html/index.en.html
The ECB Podcast: Bicycles, bitcoin and zombie firms: financial stability in the wake of the third wave, June 2021
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod210616_episode17.en.html
The ECB Podcast: A cyclist’s guide to financial stability amid a pandemic, November 2020
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod201125_episode12.en.html
European Central Bank
www.ecb.europa.eu
You can also listen to The ECB Podcast on SoundCloud, Spotify, Deezer, Stitcher, YouTube, Amazon Music and many more: https://pod.link/ecbpodcast

May 14, 2022 • 33min
Central bank communication: reggae (!), transparency and trust
How has central bank communication evolved over the years? Why is it important for us to be transparent? How can increased transparency increase trust?
Communications experts Gabriel Glöckler and Siria Angino sit down with our host Katie Ranger to discuss these questions, and also share related music and movie recommendations in this episode of The ECB Podcast.
The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank.
Published on 14 May 2022 and recorded on 11 May 2022.
In this episode:
00:26 – How central bank communication has evolved over the years
The shift from secrecy to transparency, and why we looked at communication in our recent monetary policy strategy review.
08:44 – Why central banks need to communicate in the first place
How good communication can make central bank policies more effective, and why transparency is an essential part of being accountable and building trust.
18:00 – Is more communication always better?
Will this path towards more transparency lead to full openness for central banks?
19:30 – Trust in central banks as institutions
The notion of institutional trust, the ingredients needed to build it, and the level of trust Europeans have in the ECB.
23:44 – Different types of trust
The differences between reflective and instinctive trust and how each applies to the ECB.
29:35 – Our guests’ hot tips
Our guests Gabriel Glöckler and Siria Angino share their related song and movie recommendations.
Additional material:
ECB official social media channels
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/services/socialmedia/html/index.en.html
Bank of Jamaica, reggae song about inflation
ECB official social media channels
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/services/socialmedia/html/index.en.html
Occasional paper: Clear, consistent and engaging: ECB monetary policy communication in a changing world, December 2021
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/scpops/ecb.op274~9aca14e6f6.en.pdf?63436ac843159bdf4afcf0115e7f146f
Working paper: Central bank communication with non-experts: a road to nowhere? October 2021
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/scpwps/ecb.wp2594~9fc2f0035d.en.pdf
Economic bulletin: ECB communication to the wider public, 2021
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/economic-bulletin/articles/2022/html/ecb.ebart202108_02~5c1e5a116d.en.html
Monetary policy communication and the strategy review
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/search/review/html/monpol-communication.en.html
Working paper: Instinctive versus reflective trust in the European Central Bank, May 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/scpwps/ecb.wp2660~e228b93d53.en.pdf?8a6fb1b47fc36f668234d96a3fab5292
European Central Bank website
www.ecb.europa.eu
You can also listen to The ECB Podcast on SoundCloud, Spotify, Deezer, Stitcher, YouTube, Amazon Music and many more pod.link/ecbpodcast

Apr 14, 2022 • 13min
President Lagarde presents the latest monetary policy decisions – 14 April 2022
Today our Governing Council decided on monetary policy, determining what’s needed to achieve stable prices in the euro area.
Listen to President Christine Lagarde present today’s decisions. The statement also covers:
- how the economy is performing
- how we expect prices to develop
- the risks to the economic outlook
- the dynamics behind financial and monetary conditions
Published and recorded during our press conference on 14 April 2022.
Additional material:
Our monetary policy statement at a glance, 14 April 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/visual-mps/2022/html/mopo_statement_explained_april.en.html
Christine Lagarde, Luis de Guindos: Monetary policy statement (with Q&A), 14 April 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/2022/html/ecb.is220414~fa5c8fe142.en.html
Monetary policy decisions, 14 April 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ecb.mp220414~d1b76520c6.en.html
Combined monetary policy decisions and statement, 14 April 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/shared/pdf/ecb.ds220414~2d6ffb3a83.en.pdf
European Central Bank
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html
You can also listen to The ECB Podcast on SoundCloud, Spotify, Deezer, Stitcher, YouTube, Amazon Music and many more pod.link/ecbpodcast

Mar 26, 2022 • 28min
How Russia’s war in Ukraine is affecting the euro area economy
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is first and foremost a human tragedy, but it is also having an economic impact. What effect is the conflict having on the euro area? And how might the economic situation develop?
Our host Katie Ranger discussed these questions with economist João Sousa in this episode of The ECB Podcast.
The views expressed are those of the speaker and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank.
Recorded on 22 March 2022 and published on 26 March 2022.
In this episode:
1:30 – The euro area economy before the war
The state of the euro area before the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, and how it was recovering from the pandemic.
04:32 – The war’s impact on trade
How bans on Russian imports and exports affect trade, and the potential impact of supply chain disruptions caused by the conflict.
08:50 – The war’s impact on commodities
Why the war is affecting the prices of commodities such as oil, gas and food.
10:14 – The war’s impact on global confidence
How the fear and uncertainty brought about by the war in Ukraine are dampening confidence and affecting our economy.
12:51 – The war and inflation
What is behind the current rise in inflation, including the role of energy and food prices.
18:33 – Our projections for the euro area economy
How we see our economy faring in the future and what the different scenarios we looked at are.
25:34 – Our guest’s tip for further reading on the topic
Additional material:
Macroeconomic projections, March 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/projections/html/index.en.html
ECB staff macroeconomic projections for the euro area – full report, March 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/projections/html/ecb.projections202203_ecbstaff~44f998dfd7.en.html
ECB Monetary policy statement, 10 March 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/2022/html/ecb.is220310~1bc8c1b1ca.en.html
Speech delivered by Ben S. Bernanke at the 32nd Annual Economic Policy Conference, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, 19 October 2007
https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/bernanke20071019a.htm
European Central Bank website
www.ecb.europa.eu
You can also listen to The ECB Podcast on SoundCloud, Spotify, Deezer, Stitcher, YouTube, Amazon Music and many more pod.link/ecbpodcast

Mar 10, 2022 • 18min
President Lagarde presents the latest monetary policy decisions – 10 March 2022
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is a watershed for Europe. Today our Governing Council expressed its full support to the people of Ukraine.
It also decided on monetary policy, determining what’s needed to achieve stable prices in the euro area.
Listen to President Christine Lagarde present today’s decisions. The statement also covers:
- how the economy is performing
- how we expect prices to develop
- the risks to the economic outlook
- the dynamics behind financial and monetary conditions
Published and recorded during our press conference on 10 March 2022.
Additional material:
Our monetary policy statement at a glance, 10 March 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/visual-mps/2022/html/mopo_statement_explained_march.en.html
Christine Lagarde, Luis de Guindos: Monetary policy statement (with Q&A), 10 March 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/2022/html/ecb.is220310~1bc8c1b1ca.en.html
Monetary policy decisions, 10 March 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2022/html/ecb.mp220310~2d19f8ba60.en.html
Combined monetary policy decisions and statement, 10 March 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pressconf/shared/pdf/ecb.ds220310~c4c5a52570.en.pdf
Macroeconomic projections, March 2022
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/projections/html/index.en.html
European Central Bank
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html
You can also listen to The ECB Podcast on SoundCloud, Spotify, Deezer, Stitcher, YouTube, Amazon Music and many more pod.link/ecbpodcast