# Effects of quantitative easing **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 5, 2010, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/effects-of-quantitative-easing/559576 "2010-11-05T14:32:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2010, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/effects-of-quantitative-easing/559576/21 "2010-11-10T13:52:11Z")
> [@dzero](#): > > Keep an eye on the ECB and the Euro. My personal opinion is that the ECB is going to monetize the bad debt of the PIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain). Apparently Ireland will run out of cash in the next couple of months. Since there is no consensus for any kind of unified govt response, the only way to prevent a default will be for the ECB to buy Irish debt and recapitalize their banks. That is going to tank the Euro. > > Again, this is just my semi-quasi-informed opinion. You’re not alone, a lot of people share this fear, with the ECB now massively purchasing government bonds of EU member states with liquidity problems. Nobody knows how long this will continue, or whether the Bank will grow more ‘hawkish’ in the future. A lot here depends on the appointment of the new ECB president when the incumbent, Trichet, retires next year (I know, the president doesn’t set the policy single-handedly, but he certainly has much of an impact on it). One of the most prominent candidates is Axel Weber, current president of the Bundesbank with its long hard money record, who has repeatedly called for an end to the bond purchases. Other candidates, like the governor of the Italian central bank who’s also seen as a strong candidate, have a more lax opinion on this. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/effects-of-quantitative-easing/559576.md?page=1)