The European Central Bank hired BlackRock Solutions to provide consulting services for its potential asset-backed securities purchase program, said a spokesman for the bank.
BlackRock Solutions — the money manager's risk management and advisory business — will provide advice on the design and implementation of the potential program.
The appointment followed the ECB governing council's decision in June to “intensify the preparatory work for the potential ABS purchase program,” the spokesman said in an e-mailed comment.
All decisions related to the design and implementation of the potential program and its timeline would remain with the ECB decision-making bodies, and the execution of any program will fall under the ECB's auspices.
Under the ABS initiative, the eurosystem — the ECB and the national central banks of EU member states that have adopted the euro — will consider the purchase of simple and transparent ABS, according to the ECB's website.
