The Bank of Italy's primary function is ensuring monetary and financial stability, which are essential to sustained economic growth. The Bank's activity comprises a range of commitments within the Eurosystem and worldwide.
The governance of the Bank of Italy is founded on the principle of independence enshrined in European Union and national law and reaffirmed in the Bank's own Statute. The Statute provides that the Bank is to be governed by the Shareholders' Meeting, the Board of Directors, the Governing Board, consisting of the Governor, the Senior Deputy Governor and three other Deputy Governors, and the Board of Auditors.
The Bank's independence, as supervisory authority, from indirect interference by the shareholder institutions is guaranteed by long-standing laws (Article 5 of Legislative Decree 691/1947) that preclude any competence of the Board of Directors in the matter of credit and financial supervision.
The Bank's membership of the European System of Central Banks and the functions that are entailed in that membership are fundamental. The Governor's participation in the European Central Bank's Governing Council means that the duties performed and the powers exercised in that framework derive exclusively from that position.
The Bank's accounts are verified by an external auditing firm, as laid down in the Statute of the European System of Central Banks.
