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Hi, I friend of mine is trying to find out who are the share holders of the Bundesbank (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deutsche_Bundesbank) but he can't.
He asked it in yahoo answers but apparently that violates the "community rules".
Anyone knows the answer?

I dont have sources but its my understanding that the majority of the european central bank belong to their governments. I know for sure the spanish central bank belongs to the spanish government.

Yahoo's monkey probably doesn't know what the Bundesbank is, and misinterpret it as a solicitation for private information. The central bank is a heavily regulated institution so the notion of shareholders does not usually apply in any normal sense. To give it independence, it is subject to parliamentary, not governmental control.
"But the fed is a PRIVATE bank sucking the lifeblood of WORKING MEN !!!" cue in 3...2...1...

I see, unlike the fed, european central banks are each one part of their state. All of them?
What about the ECB?
Is an agreement between national banks or is it part of the european union?

The ECB is governed (and owned if it applies) by the UE country members, so your answer is the same as before.

And the Fed is not private. It has some private component but it is almost anecdotical. Its controlled by the government.

The ECB is the Central Bank of the European Union

It's paid in capital comes from the regional central banks of each of the member states

It's basically the same structure as the United States, where there are regional Federal Reserve Banks and then U have The Federal Reserve bank (which Bernanke heads)

Should the ECB require more capital, the regional central banks have to supply them with it. Since the regional central banks are owned by the member states, it's tax payers money you are talking about in the end

Brat

Please specify exactly what control the US government has over the Federal Reserve. I would love to hear exactly what functions they use to exert control over the fed other than the president appointing the Board of Governors for an irrevocable 14 year term, with senate confirmation. Additionally, why doesn't The Federal Reserve mint any metal coins? Was not the very intent of the original Federal Reserve Act of 1913 to create a system insulated from government control? How does one insulate from government, yet allow it to be controlled at the same time?

http://www.federalreserve.gov/aboutthefed/fract.htm
http://www.auburn.edu/~johnspm/gloss/federal_reserve_system
http://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metacrs9044/m1/1/high_res_d/IP0281G.pdf (page 14)

First, let's be clear here on what you mean by "government" - sometimes its confusing what English speakers mean.

If by government you mean the Executive branch of the federal state, then you're right, the Fed is quite independent from it.

But if by government you mean the federal state as a whole, then the Fed is clearly a branch of government, pretty much like the Supreme Court. These are very autonomous branches, ultimately controlled only by Congress, which controls the entire federal state actually. But even the Congress normally doesn't interfere directly with the Fed or the Supreme Court.

The power these autonomous branches have is granted by the state and is not available to any private institution. They are things only a state can create.
So, no, the Fed isn't a private institution, it is a branch of the state. Having "shareholders" doesn't change anything - only makes it more clear the inevitable symbiosis between Big Government and Big Corporations.

No, Fed is a private institution and the state/government is a branch of the Fed!

Wait, this is exactly what I'm asking. Does it have shares like stock shares?
Then it's private in my opinion or a hybrid public-private if you wish.
Do the ECB or the national central banks of europe have private shareholders?

Don't actually know if it has. But as I said, it doesn't change anything. The damage they cause is due to the (state) power they have. Central banks should not exist, with or without private shareholders.

I agree. I would just say that monopoly money should not exists.
But yes it changes things, in my opinion. Not that monopoly money is good if it's in public hands, but it's even more unfair if it is in corporate hands.

The damage they cause now is due to their private nature. They are the representatives of the private banks, not of 'the people'. They print money and the government borrows that money, and has to pay an ever increasing compounding interest on that money.
When central banks are 100% government owned, operated and controlled, then it's the government that creates (prints) and issues the money, and not the private bank vultures. Interest on money lent to the public will then revert to the state, not to some private stockholders, and can be used for healthcare, education, housing etc.

The original text of the 1913 act that established the FED is here:
http://www.llsdc.org/attachments/files/105/FRA-LH-PL63-43.pdf

The member banks of the federal reserve system are the shareholders of the FED.  Their percentage ownership is proportional to the amount of reserves they hold (i.e. the largest banks are the largest shareholders).  The shareholders are paid a dividend of 6% of the FED's earnings...earnings in excess of that are returned to the federal government as a "franchise tax."

I asked HOW they exert control. I did not ask for a repetition of the mantra that they are a government institution. If you think it is true back it up with fact.

If so inclined, one could always grab a copy of the Federal Reserve Act (http://www.llsdc.org/attachments/files/105/FRA-LH-PL63-43.pdf) and try to find out oneself if any clues would be included in the establishing act itself.

Thanks.
What my friend wanted to know specifically was if the german central bank had a similar ownership and/or profit distribution scheme.
I'm interested in all the other central banks too.

Yes, thats why I linked it in my first post.

So who are the shareholders of the Bundesbank again?