About central bank certificates
Central bank certificates in liquidity management
Central bank certificates are an instrument in Norges Banks liquidity management system. Norges Bank issues central bank certificates to withdraw liquidity in periods when liquidity is expected to remain elevated over time.
The certificates are used in combination with F-loans and F-deposits to steer liquidity towards a target range of NOK 30–40 billion. Central bank certificates are used to withdraw liquidity over longer periods, while shorter-term liquidity management is conducted through F-loans and F-deposits.
Issuance
The certificates are sold through competitive auctions via selected primary dealers [lenke] on Bloomberg’s auction platform. Primary dealers are required to submit bids on behalf of their customers. Under normal circumstances, all accepted bids are allotted at the marginal allotment rate (uniform price auction).
Norges Bank publishes a quarterly auction calendar, containing information about the instruments to be issued in the coming quarter and estimated auction volumes. The calendar is updated monthly, and volumes are adjusted if needed. Norges Bank announces the auction volume for each ISIN a few days prior to each auction and will normally allot the announced volume. Norges Bank nevertheless reserves the right to reject bids and to allot less than the announced volume.
Volumes and tenors
- Auctions will normally be held every Tuesday for two maturities, with settlement two days later.
- New issues will have tenors of one month and three months. A new one-month certificate will be issued every week, while a new three-month certificate will be issued every fourth week.
- The three-month certificates will be tapped each week for three weeks following the initial issue.
Norges Bank will normally seek to maintain a stable outstanding volume throughout the year, unless the forecast for structural liquidity changes significantly or other circumstances make it appropriate to adjust the volume.
Other details and general terms
The certificates will be issued as fixed-rate zero-coupon instruments. They will be registered with VPS and listed on Euronext Oslo Børs. Norges Bank will not initiate a credit rating for the certificates. For further details, see the general terms and conditions for central bank certificates issued by Norges Bank.
Norske sentralbanksertifikater - generelle vilkår
Background
In autumn 2025, Norges Bank decided to introduce central bank certificates as a new instrument in liquidity management and asked for input on the design of the certificates through a public consultation.
The reason for the introduction of the certificates was that structural liquidity had risen to historically high levels over the preceding years. There were signs that if Norges Bank did not make any adjustments, the increase in structural liquidity could weaken the effectiveness of the central bank’s liquidity policy. Following a review of possible adjustments, Norges Bank concluded that central bank certificates were the most suitable instrument for strengthening policy implementation, see the consultation paper.