European Central Bank Executive Board member Benoit Coeure said Friday that the central bank is looking at options to improve lending to small firms, which form the backbone of the Eurozone economy.
"The ECB is today exploring options to further strengthen lending to the real economy and, in particular, to small and medium-sized enterprises," he said in a speech in Orleans, France. "But the ECB can only act within its mandate," Coeure said.
"Assuming non-profitable assets today present in the balance sheets of banks or seeking to artificially eliminate differences in financing costs arising from different risk environment or from insufficient capital would amount to substituting actions not taken by other actors," he said.
According to the policymaker, this would be detrimental to the central bank's independence.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.