ACT ON THE BANK OF -AND Section l Status The Bank ofFinland is the central bank of Finland. It is an independent institution governed.by public law. The Bank of Fialand shall act as part of thc European System of Central Banks in the manner laid down in the Treaty establishing the European Communities, hereinafter referred to as 'the Treaty', and the Statute of the European System of Central B& and of the European Central Bank, hereinafter referred to as 'the Statute'. In perf'ming tasks of the European System of Central Banks, the Bank of Finland shall act in accordance with the guideline and instnrctions of the European Central Bank. Section 2 0 bjective Tn ac~ordmcewith the Treaty, the primary objective of the Bank of Finland shall be to maintain price stability. Without prejudice to the objective laid down in paragraph 1, the Bank of Finland shall also support the achievement of other economic'policy objectives in accordance with the TW. Section 3 Tasks The lask ofthe Bank of Finland shall be to contribute to the exeoution of monetary policy as dcfined by the Governing Council of the European Central Bank. The Bank of Finland shall also: contribute to maintenance of the currency supply and issuancece of bank notes; contribute to holding and management of foreign exchange reserves; participate in maintaining the reliability and effidency ofthe paymcnt system and overall financial system and participate in their development; and provide for the compilation and publication of statistics as & necessary for carrying out its tasks. Section 4 Independence and cooperation with other authorities In performing tasks of the European System of Central Banks, neither the Bank of Finland nor members of its governing bodies shall seek or take instructions concerning such tasks from entities other than the European Central Bank. The Bank ofFinland shall cooperate necessary with the Council of State and other authorities. Section 5 Powers Tn order to any out its tasks, the Bank of Finland is empowered to: gnat and obtain credit; accept and make deposits; engage in trade in securities, precious metals and foreign exchange; hande payment transactions and dewof payments; engage in other activities in the securities, money and fbreign exchange markets; and issue rules and instructions conc~gthe handling of notes and coins to banks and other monetary institutions and to C other similar entities. The Bank of Finland may own shares, other participations and real estate to the extent necessary for canying out its tasks and organking its activities. Section 6 Prohibition of public financing The Bank of Finland is not dowed to grant credit to any institution or body of the European Union or to any Member State or its region& local or other authorities, or to any other public entity. Nor is the Bank of Finland allowed to subscribe to debt instruments issued by entities referred to in paragraph 1. ,With the exception'of credit institutions, Le provisions laid down in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall apply also to companies in which a public cntity rcfmcd to in paragaph 1 exercises control. Publicly owned aedit institutions shall be given the same treatment as private credit institutions . in the context of the supply of reserves by central banks. Section 7 Collateral The Bank of Finland shall hold adequate collateral in connection with the granting of credit. Section 8 Capital The Bank of Finland shall have primary capital and a reserve W. The reserve fund can be used for increasing the primary capital or for covering losses, as prescribed in section 21. Section 9 Governing bodies Ihc Bank of Finland's governing bodies are the Parliamentary Supmisov Council and the Board. Section 10 Parliamentary Sapenisory Coundl The Parliamentary Supervisory CounciI, which shall consist of nine members elected by ~arliarn;nt, shall elect a chairman and a deputy chairman fmamong its members. A member of the Parliamentary Supervisory Council is obliged to resign if , he is appointed as a member of the Council of State or a member of the Board- Section l1 Tasks of the Parliamentary Supervisory CoanciI As a body supenrising the management and activities offte Bar& of Finland, the Parliamentary Supervisory Co&d shall iedorm the following tasks: confirm, upon proposal, ofthe Board, the basic pi=inciples applied in drawing up the annual accounts of the Bank of Finland; decide, on the basis of the auditors' report, on the confirmation of the Bank's balance sheet and profit and Ioss account and on the discharge of the Board from liability for matters concerning internal rnanagemcnt of the Bank of Finland; decide, upon proposal of the Board, on measures concerning the Bank's profit or loss for the financial yw; report annually to Parliament on the Bank's activities and administration and on the main issues dealt with by the as necessary, submit to Parliament reports on monetary policy and thc other activities of the Bank of Finland. In respect of the Bantc's management, the Parliamentary Supetvisory Council shall: make proposals to thc Council of State on the filling.of positions as members of the Board; decide on the principles for determining salaries, leaves of absence and annual leaves of members of the Board as well as on the execution of their duties during leaves of absence cxcceding one week; decide on the issuance ofwarnings to members of the Board and settle other issues related to their service; appoint, upon proposal of the Board, directors of the Bank of FinIand; appoint thc Deputy Chhanof the Board; confirm the Bank of Finland's Pension and Survivors' Pension Regulations and issue regulations concerning the managcmmt of the Bank's pension liability, upon proposd of the Board, . and issue, upon proposal of the Board, regulations concerning the language skills required ofofficials of the Bank of Finland. In addition, the Parliamentary Supavisory Council shall: decide on motions to be put before Parliamat; 4 decide on proposals to be submitted to the Council of.State in highIy important matters of principle: confirm the bases for fw and remunerations to be paid to auditors elected by Parliament and their secrt!q, 3) other financial transactions that change or may change the claims ofa resident entiiy on nonresident entities or the liabilikies of a resident entity to nonresident entities. The Bank of Finland may oblige any entity to supply it with ixzformation as refacd to in paragraph 1 under penalty of fine. The Bank of Finland shall decide on the imposition of such a fine. Decisions referred to above in paragraph 2 may be appealed to the Supreme Administrative Court as prescribed in the Act on Application of ~&strative Law (5861 1 996). A decision that has been appealed may be enforced despite the appeal, unless the appeal authority orders otherwise. Section 29 Right of action and place of jurisdiction The Board shall exercise the right of adion ofthe Bank of Finland before court and other authorities and corporate entities. The Board shall represent the Bank before the Court of Justice of the European Communities. In civil cases, the Bank of Finland shall act as defendant at the Helsinki District Court. Section 30 1 Impeachment Any charges brought against a mwber of the Parliamentary Supervisory Council or a member of the Board in respect of misconduct in ofice shall be dealt with hthe first instance by the Helsinki Court of Appeal. Section 31 EnW hto force This Act shaU enter into force at the date when Finland enters the single currency area in accordance with Article 109 1 of the Treaty. The Act shall repeal &c Act on the Bank of Finland enacted 24 July 1997 (719/1997), excluding section 18. Section 16 of this Act shall enter itlto fowon (day) (month) 1998 and repd section 18 of the Act on the Bank of Finland (719/1997). Measures necessary for enforcement of this Act can be taken before the Act . enters into force. Until 1 January 2002, paragraph 1 and 2 of Section 3 1 of the repealed Act, as they were h effect at the time of entry into force of this Act, shall apply instead of section 21, paragraph 2, of this Act. ACT ON COINS In accordance with a decision of Parliament, the following is enacted: Section 1 In Finland, pursuant to the legidation of the European Communities, the State has the exclusive right to mint coins for its own account. Section 2 Coins shall be. issued by the Bank of Finland. The competent Ministxy shall convey the , coins to the Bank of Finland, at face value, for issuance. The Bank of Finland and the competent Ministry may jointly agree on the procedure by which coins are issued. Substantially damaged coins shall not be used as means of payment nor shall it be obligatory to accept such coins ks payment. The Bank of Finland shall accept a damaged coin, if it can be established with Gextainty that it is genuine. - Section 4 The State shall. redeem coins issued by the Bank of Finland and returned to thc Bank:of Finland at their face value. Section 5 Pursuant to the legislation of the European Communities, the competent Ministry can decide which wins shall cease to be Iegal tender. Notwithstanding the aforementioned provisions, the Bank of Finland shall redam at face value coins that have ceased to be legal tender for a period of ten years fkom the date of entry into force ofa decision referred to in paragraph 1. The State shaU in like manner redeem coins that have been redeemed by the Bank of Finland in accordance with paragraph 2 witbin one year fiom the expiry of the time period specified in paragraph 2.