The European Central Bank

The European Central Bank is the central bank for Europe's single currency, the euro. Ireland was among the first group of EU Member States to adopt the euro in 1999. On 1 January 2011, Estonia will adopt the euro, bringing to 17 the total number of Member States in the euro area.

The Governing Council is the main decision-making body of the ECB. It consists of the governors of the national central banks of the euro area countries as well as the Executive Board, which consists of six members, including the ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet.