The ECB Podcast

• Mind the gap: gender and financial literacy

  We need financial literacy to make good financial decisions. But did you know that half of Europeans have low financial literacy levels, and that 60% of them are women? Our host Stefania Secola talks to Annamaria Lusardi from Stanford University about what financial literacy is, why it matters and how we can improve it, especially among women. The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank. Published on 13 March 2025 and recorded on 7 March 2025. In this episode: 00:01 Commitments made by central banks How did central bank Governors commit to improving financial literacy in their respective countries? What are the desired outcomes? 00:27 Looking at the numbers How financially literate are Europeans? How big is the gap between men and women? And what can we do about it? 01:55 Financial literacy defined What is financial literacy? How does it relate to financial independence? 03:58 Measuring financial literacy There are three simple questions, known as the “Big Three”, that experts use to measure financial literacy. Can you, our listener, answer them? 05:59 Why central banks care about financial literacy Why does financial literacy matter for central banks? How does it relate to the effectiveness of monetary policy and trust in what a central bank does? And how does it affect banking supervision? 10:53 Financial knowledge in Europe Why is financial literacy in Europe so low? What can we do to increase the overall level of financial literacy among Europeans? 12:30 When to start addressing financial literacy When is the best time to improve people’s financial literacy? Is it limited to schools or are there also other teachable moments? 15:50 The gender gap in financial literacy Why is there this gender gap and why is it a problem? What can we do to make sure that half the population isn’t left behind? 20:14 The role of fintech Does fintech complement financial literacy? What risks do gender differences in digital literacy pose when it comes to using fintech? 22:26 The road ahead Central banks made five commitments to improve financial literacy. What are these commitments? 24:50 Financial literacy question: answer revealed We answer the first “Big Three” question. Listen and see whether you chose the correct answer! 25:45 Our guest’s hot tip Annamaria shares her hot tip with our listeners. Further reading: Annamaria Lusardi’s research https://www.annamarialusardi.com/research/ ECB International Women’s Day Event 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/conferences/html/20250307_intl_womens_day.en.html The ECB Blog: The gender gap at work is closing – but slowly https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/blog/date/2025/html/ecb.blog20250307~85fd774bd3.en.html The “Big Three” and “Big Five” https://gflec.org/education/questions-that-indicate-financial-literacy/ Chart: Gender gap in financial literacy is pervasive, incl. the young, well educated and high income https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvVzgcXCFBw&t=222s ECB Instagram https://www.instagram.com/europeancentralbank/ European Central Bank www.ecb.europa.eu ECB Banking Supervision https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html

  12.3.2025  

  27:17
• President Lagarde presents the latest monetary policy decisions – 6 March 2025

  Today our Governing Council decided on monetary policy, determining what’s needed to return inflation to our 2% goal in a timely manner. Listen to President Christine Lagarde present today’s decisions. The statement also covers: • how the economy is performing • how we expect prices to develop • the risks to the economic outlook • the dynamics behind financial and monetary conditions Our monetary policy statement at a glance, 6 March 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/press_conference/visual-mps/2025/html/mopo_statement_explained_march.en.html Christine Lagarde, Luis de Guindos: Monetary policy statement, 6 March 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/press_conference/monetary-policy-statement/2025/html/ecb.is250306~4307bd0941.en.html Monetary policy decisions, 6 March 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2025/html/ecb.mp250306~d4340800b3.en.html Combined monetary policy decisions and statement, 6 March 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/press_conference/monetary-policy-statement/shared/pdf/ecb.ds250306~ca4269dcc8.en.pdf Macroeconomic projections, 6 March 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/projections/html/ecb.projections202503_ecbstaff~106050a4fa.en.html European Central Bank https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html You can also listen on all major podcast platforms. Published and recorded during our press conference on 6 March 2025.

  04.3.2025  

  16:15
• You ask, we answer: careers, inflation and cooperation

  Your questions answered: whether it’s about careers at the ECB, how our work affects people and businesses, or how we plan to tackle global challenges, we tackle listeners’ questions in this #AskECB episode of The ECB Podcast. Join our host Stefania Secola as she talks to colleagues Eglantine Devaux and Gabriel Glöckler. The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank. Published on 25 February 2025 and recorded on 20 February 2025. In this episode: 00:36 Your questions answered You, our listeners, sent us your burning questions on social media. What did you want to know? And who do we have onboard to answer your questions? 01:54 Working at the European Central Bank What does it take to join the team? How do we nurture and grow talent? And what are the advantages of working in such a diverse environment? 08:34 Small businesses and consumers How do our monetary policy decisions affect small businesses and consumers? How does this relate to our mission? We tackle these questions by looking at the example of a garden centre. 08:54 Stable, predictable changes in prices How do we keep prices stable? What tools do we have available? And how does our price stability objective help motivate us? 14:47 Facing global economic challenges What challenges lie ahead? How can we respond to uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and a changing climate? 16:19 The challenge posed by tariffs How will tariffs impact our economies, and what about inflation? 18:27 Europe’s potential What opportunities can we harness as Europeans? And what could they mean for our economy? 22:43 Communication among central banks worldwide How do we work together? Are there particular structures in place? And what topics do we discuss? 27:49 Our guests’ hot tips Eglantine and Gabriel share their hot tips with our listeners. Further readings: ECB vacancies https://talent.ecb.europa.eu/careers Graduate programme https://www.ecb.europa.eu/careers/what-we-offer/graduate/html/index.en.html Traineeship https://www.ecb.europa.eu/careers/what-we-offer/traineeship/html/index.en.html What we offer https://www.ecb.europa.eu/careers/what-we-offer/benefits/html/index.en.html IMF - Ask an Economist https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmYAE4wV1YQzDbnDZlNJoqMhIDUQpEPTZ IMF - Back to Basics https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmYAE4wV1YQyRb6H1_XJWY73HJVdR6oBX IMF- Analyze This! https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmYAE4wV1YQz_LzOLaKTpDWyH93SNuF7x IMF - Charts in Motion https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmYAE4wV1YQz6xXWx5eB7uT9zE-4KcmAZ ECB - Espresso Economics https://www.youtube.com/@Espresso_Economics ECB Instagram https://www.instagram.com/europeancentralbank/ European Central Bank www.ecb.europa.eu ECB Banking Supervision https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html

  24.2.2025  

  30:27
• President Lagarde presents the latest monetary policy decisions – 30 January 2025

  Today our Governing Council decided on monetary policy, determining what’s needed to return inflation to our 2% goal in a timely manner. Listen to President Christine Lagarde present today’s decisions. The statement also covers: • how the economy is performing • how we expect prices to develop • the risks to the economic outlook • the dynamics behind financial and monetary conditions Published and recorded during our press conference on 30 January 2025 Our monetary policy statement at a glance, 30 January 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/press_conference/visual-mps/2025/html/mopo_statement_explained_january.en.html Christine Lagarde, Luis de Guindos: Monetary policy statement, 30 January 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/press_conference/monetary-policy-statement/2025/html/ecb.is250130~1f418aa0f4.en.html Monetary policy decisions, 30 January 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2025/html/ecb.mp250130~530b29e622.en.html Combined monetary policy decisions and statement, 30 January 2025 https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/press_conference/monetary-policy-statement/shared/pdf/ecb.ds250130~1ac86112bf.en.pdf?b9377ca85fd3aef4fb5af6f3189be827 European Central Bank https://www.ecb.europa.eu/home/html/index.en.html You can also listen on all major podcast platforms.

  29.1.2025  

  14:13
• Nice talking to you: highlights from 100 episodes

  We’ve reached 100 episodes of The ECB Podcast! Our hosts Stefania Secola and Paul Gordon reflect on their favourite episodes and welcome two special guests to the show. The views expressed are those of the speakers and not necessarily those of the European Central Bank. Published on 16 January 2025 and recorded on 10 January 2025. In this episode: 00:54 100th episode What topics have we covered? Which guests have joined us? And how can you – our listeners – help shape the podcast’s future? 03:18 What can podcasts do for central bank communications? Why did we start a podcast? And how does it enable us to better explain our work to keep prices stable and banks safe? 06:09 What does Taylor Swift have to do with it? Stefania reflects on our AskECB episode, where we answered YOUR questions. The next edition is coming up – find out how you can submit your questions! 07:50 A memorable episode Paul reflects on the episode “War, geopolitics and the economy”. How can we apply the lessons learnt amid the rising geopolitical risks we’re observing? 09:56 Our most played episode Which episode features three global leaders? What did they say about female empowerment and the importance of diversity? And how much progress has been made on this topic? 11:38 A special surprise guest 12:56 Spotlight on past guests We’ve interviewed Presidents, Board members and experts. But who has been our most frequent guest? And what topics have they covered? 15:57 A special surprise guest 17:06 Our hosts’ hot tips Paul and Stefania share their hot tips with our listeners. Further reading: “Swiftflation”, banknotes and the digital euro https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod241005_episode94.en.html War, geopolitics and the economy https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod240705_episode88.en.html What interest rate hikes mean for you, the economy and inflation https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod220723_episode38.en.html A conversation about female empowerment, the need for an inclusive recovery and transatlantic cooperation https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod210715_episode18.en.html A digital euro: what, why, when? (part 1) https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod221015_episode41.en.html A digital euro: what, why, when? (part 2) https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod221019_episode42.en.html The ECB Podcast Summer School #1: a deep dive into inflation https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod230804_episode66.en.html The ECB Podcast Summer School #2: the nuts and bolts of interest rates https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod230811_episode67.en.html The ECB Podcast Summer School #3: the role of banks in fighting inflation https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod230818_episode68.en.html The ECB Podcast Summer School #1: what do European banking supervision and football have in common? https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod240808_episode91.en.html The ECB Podcast Summer School #2: a day in the life of a banking supervisor https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod240817_episode92.en.html ECB Instagram https://www.instagram.com/europeancentralbank/ Espresso Economics https://www.youtube.com/@Espresso_Economics BBC Radio 4 – Thing Fell Apart https://open.spotify.com/show/5cQxyxeC057nGcx7epp4ed European Central Bank www.ecb.europa.eu

  16.1.2025  

  20:23

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