Lagarde appears to have been in possession of mobile phones collected by European Central Bank colleagues

According to informed sources, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde collected the mobile phones of monetary authorities at this week’s interest rate meeting in order to prevent important information from being transmitted to the media prematurely. It also reprimanded monetary authorities because important data was disclosed before the next interest rate decision, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters news agency.

Under Lagarde’s predecessor, Mario Draghi, information from the euro’s department of oversight bodies was repeatedly leaked. The European Central Bank declined to comment.

It was about filling the top positions

According to insiders, the ECB’s 26-member Governing Council were asked to hand over their mobile phones on Wednesday, the first day of the interest rate meeting. At the time, monetary authorities were on the verge of nominating the Vice-President of the Bundesbank, Claudia Buch, to the vacant top position on the ECB’s banking supervisory body.

The mobile phones were not returned until after the European Central Bank announced Buch’s nomination. Five years ago, when Andrea Enria, the current chief banking supervisor at the European Central Bank, was nominated for the position, the news reached the media before the ECB had officially announced it.