Eesti Pank's 2012 budget size is 19.8 million euro. The 13.8 per cent increase compared to 2011 was mostly due to the exponential increase in cash related costs.

Eesti Pank will participate in the production of euro banknotes for the first time in 2012. Next year, the central bank will have to return the 44 million banknotes borrowed from the Eurosystem in autumn 2010 in order to change over to the euro. In addition, it is necessary to produce the annual cash share allocated by the European Central bank. Eesti Pank and eight other euro area central banks acquire their shares of banknotes via a joint procurement. Eesti Pank’s responsibility is to produce 20-euro notes, which will be added to the Eurosystem’s common cash stock.

In 2010–2011, Eesti Pank spent 12.7 million euro on the changeover to the single currency. This was covered from a separate euro-adoption budget. About 95% of the costs were cash related. Other larger expenditures were made on information campaigns and information technology.

Cash related costs excluded, the central bank's next year's budget is 3.1% larger compared to 2011.

Eesti Pank's larger investments will be in the IP-based telephone system and in repairing the ventilation system and the roof. Personnel costs will grow by 2%, to 8 million euro.

According to Eesti Pank's forecast, next year's revenues will be 22.8 million euro. As a euro area central bank, Eesti Pank's main sources of revenue are reserve placement, monetary income and income from reserves managed by the ECB.

Eesti Pank's long-term objective is to keep the level of expenditure relative to GDP at a level comparable to previous years. Since costs related to cash vary across years, these have not been included in the comparison. The central bank's budget size was 0.101% of GDP in 2011. Based on the economic forecast, the indicator for the 2012 budget is 0.098%.

 Eesti Pank's task is to ensure price stability in the euro area along with other euro area central banks. To this end, Eesti Pank must be independent, so the central bank is not related to the state budget.

The 2011 net operating surplus of Eesti Pank will be published in the central bank's annual report in the first half of 2012. Previous annual reports are available on the web page of Eesti Pank.

For further information:
Viljar Rääsk
Eesti Pank
Public Relations Division
Telephone: 668 0745, 527 5055
E-mail: viljar.raask@eestipank.ee