ECB's Liikanen: We're Ready and Able to Act

Erkki Liikanen, governor of the Bank of Finland
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Erkki Liikanen, governor of the Bank of Finland

European Central Bank board member Ewald Nowotny told CNBC on Friday that markets overinterpreted President Mario Draghi's recent comments on negative deposit rates.

"Well I think the markets over interpreted this point. Of course, there is always some kind of technical discussion about it but there is no specific plan in that direction. I personally think this is something where one really has to analyze very carefully the effects, side effects, physiological effects so this is not something that is of relevance in the immediate future."

Erkki Liikanen told CNBC on Friday that he agreed with the bank's decision to cut interest rates by 25 basis points and said there was no split on the governing council regarding the decision.

He said the bank was ready and able to act and that further rate cuts would be dependent on economic data.

"We have taken actions yesterday and we said that we will monitor the situation. We are ready to act and able to act if needed. That is clear," Liikanen, who is also governor of Finland's central bank said. "The discussion is always lively."

He said the council had been discussing the issue of negative deposit rates for some time. "Technically, we are ready, but there are also unintended consequences which must be properly assessed before any actions are taken."