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"The more time passes ... the more we see signs it [three year refinancing operation] has been an effective policy measure"
- Mario Draghi, the ECB president
The European Central Bank's 489 billion euros allotted among euro area banks at a record rate of one per cent are supporting the region's economy, said the ECB president on Thursday.
"The extensive recourse to the first three year refinancing operation indicates that our non-standard policy measures are providing a substantial contribution to improving the funding situation of the banks, thereby supporting financing conditions and confidence," ECB President Mario Draghi told at news conference after the ECB kept its key rate at one percent.
"The more time passes ... the more we see signs it has been an effective policy measure," Draghi said. "This decision has prevented a credit contraction that would have been ... much, much more serious."