Bank deposits at ECB rise, bond tally inches up

The amount of cash deposited by banks at the European Central Bank inched higher, data showed on Monday.

The ECB's 60 billion euro covered bond buying programme also continued to make progress. The total value of bonds purchased to-date reached 17.352 billion euros, up from 17.128 billion euros. It means it is now almost 30 percent of the way through its plan.

The ECB said commercial banks deposited 144.788 billion euros at the ECB overnight, compared to 141.011 billion previously.

The deposits have topped 100 billion euros since the ECB pumped 75 billion euros into the system in its latest injection of one-year funds.

The amounts parked at the ECB's deposit facility have been high since it flooded money markets with almost half a trillion euros at the end of June in the first of three planned injections of one-year funds.

The amount banks borrowed from the ECB's overnight account ticked higher, rising to 85 million euros from 79 million euros previously, the ECB added.

The ECB and the 16 euro zone national central banks are buying euro-denominated covered bonds - debt backed by a pool of assets such as mortgage loans that remain on the issuing bank's balance sheet - over the next year, from both primary and secondary markets.