First, it will inherit credibility from the present NCBs, which have all conducted monetary policies aimed at price stability and convergence in accord with the principles of the Maastricht Treaty. Secondly, its high degree of independence will give the ECB/ESCB a certain amount of institutional credibility right from the outset.
Recently, we have heard many voices, among political decision-makers, on the one hand, and academic researchers, on the other, who have emphasized the necessity of the accountability and transparency of the ECB. Central banks and central bankers have since the onset of liberalization understood that one essential ingredient of monetary policymaking is openness.