ECB joins global central banks in balance sheet expansion YTD Quick Take
- Central banks talk a tough game regarding quantitative tightening, but in 2023, we are seeing balance sheet expansion (quantitative easing).
- The new fed programs may not be directly QE related, but we see significant balance sheet expansion from the Fed, People’s Bank of China, and the European Central Bank.
- ECB is now the latest central bank to have a positive balance sheet YTD, +0.16%, back-to-back weeks of expanding the balance sheet.
- In the case of the ECB, they are taking more from credit lines from the Fed.
- They join the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) +1.39% and the Fed +2.66%, in terms of balance sheet expansion.
- Bank of Japan also makes up the top 4 central banks; the balance sheet is only -0.12%. It was up +4% the week prior.
- Bitcoin is up 70%, year to date, as CryptoSlate has previously analyzed Bitcoin as a liquidity indicator.
Analyst 
James Van Straten
James fervently appreciates data, technology, and trend-spotting. As a tech and liberty maximalist, he hails Bitcoin as the 21st century's paramount invention.
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