Seat of the European Central Bank Seat of the European Central Bank The seat of the European Central Bank (ECB) is in Ostend (East End), Frankfurt. The premises include the former Wholesale Market Hall ("Großmarkthalle"), a new 185/165 m twin-skyscraper and a new low-rise building to connect the two. East of the city centre, it houses the new headquarters for the European Central Bank (ECB). It was completed in 2014 and was officially opened on 18 March 2015. The ECB is required by the Treaties of the European Union to have its seat within the city limits of Frankfurt, the largest financial centre in the Eurozone.
European Central Bank foreign exchange operations, to take care of the foreign reserves of the European System of Central Banks and operation of the financial market infrastructure under the TARGET2 payments system and the technical platform (currently being developed) for settlement of securities in Europe (TARGET2 Securities). The ECB has, under Article 16 of its Statute, the exclusive right to authorise the issuance of euro banknotes. Member states can issue euro coins, but the amount must be authorised by the ECB beforehand. The ECB is governed by European law directly, but its set-up resembles that of a corporation in the sense that the