central bank

A financial institution that controls the production and distribution of a nation’s currency, sets monetary policy and regulates member banks. In the U.S., the central bank is the Federal Reserve System. It is the third-largest central bank in the world. The four other central banks making up the largest five are People’s Bank of China, Bank of Japan, Bank of Spain and Central Bank of Brazil. In the Eurozone, the central bank is the European Central Bank (ECB).