The Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (EEC) was signed in Rome on 25 March 1957 by the representatives of the Federal Republic of Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. It includes a protocol that lays down the tasks and Statute of the European Investment Bank (EIB).

Act amending the protocol on the statue of the European Investment Bank empowering the Board of Governors to establish a European Investment Fund, signed in Brussels on 25 March 1993.

The Statute of the European Investment Bank (EIB), drawn up as a Protocol (No 10) annexed to the Treaty establishing the European Community, may be amended only in accordance with the procedure provided for amending the Treaties, apart from a limited number of changes for which the Board of Governors has been vested with authority (Article 4(1) and (3) and Article 13 of the Statute). This consolidated version of the Statute is dated 1 July 1999.

The EIB's Statute, drawn up as a Protocol (No 10) annexed to the Treaty establishing the European Community, can be altered solely in accordance with the procedure provided for amending the Treaties, apart from a limited number of changes for which the Board of Governors has been vested with authority (Article 4 (1) and (3), and Article 13 of the Statute). This consolidated version incorporates all the amendments to the Statute since the creation of the Institution.

Protocol No 5 on the Statute of the European Investment Bank annexed to the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union as amended by the Treaty of Lisbon of 13 December 2007.

Statutes of the European Investment Fund adopted by the Board of Governors of the European Investment Bank on 25 May 1994.

Statutes of the European Investment Fund approved on 14 June 1994 and amended on 19 June 2000 by the General Meeting.

Statutes of the European Investment Fund adopted on 25 May 1994 (approved on 14 June 1994) as amended on 19 June 2000 and on 30 November 2007.

Statutes of the European Investment Fund adopted on 25 May 1994 (approved on 14 June 1994) as amended on 19 June 2000, on 30 November 2007 and at last amended by a Decision of the General Meeting on 8 March 2012.

The Foreign Ministers of the Member States of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), meeting on 1 and 2 June 1955 in Messina, adopt a Resolution laying the foundations of a future common market. Among other proposals, they put forward the idea of creating a European investment fund. This fund would be used for ‘the common development of Europe’s inherent economic potentialities and, in particular, for the development of the less favoured regions of the participating countries.’

On 21 April 1956, the Intergovernmental Committee established by the Messina Conference held on 1 and 2 June 1955 submits its report to the governments of the ECSC Member States. This document, known as the ‘Spaak Report’, includes proposals regarding the aim, resources and organisation of an investment fund which would seek to establish conditions for the balanced, smooth development of the Common Market.

Article published in the Italian daily newspaper Il nuovo Corriere della Sera on 28 March 1957, following the creation of the European Investment Bank (EIB) by the Treaty of Rome establishing the European Economic Community (EEC), signed on 25 March 1957.

Allocution de Henri Liebaert, Président du Conseil des gouverneurs de la Banque européenne d'investissement (BEI), lors de la première réunion du Conseil des gouverneurs le 25 janvier 1958 à Bruxelles.

Written Question No 489/74 by Lord O'Hagan, Member of the European Parliament, to the Commission of the European Communities regarding the relationship of the European Investment Bank (EIB) with the Commission. The structural relationship between the two institutions stems from the inclusion of one director and one alternate, nominated by the Commission, on the Bank's Board of Directors. An operational relationship likewise exists owing to the fact that EIB loan applications are submitted to the Commission for an opinion. However, the Commission does add that the EIB's executive bodies are responsible only to the Bank and are completely independent in the performance of their duties.

In his Opinion of 24 November 1987, Advocate General Federico Mancini argues that the officials of the European Investment Bank (EIB) should be subject to the Community tax. This leads him to comment on the legal nature of the Bank. Although the EIB is neither an institution nor an organ of the EEC, it is nevertheless an autonomous segment of the organisational machinery of the Community, established and with a legal personality conferred by the Treaty, and having a functional connection with the Community. His arguments render invalid the theory of an independent EIB, a ‘third party’ vis-à-vis the Community.

According to the Court of Justice of the European Communities, the granting to the European Investment Bank (EIB) of operational and institutional autonomy in order to perform the tasks assigned to it on the financial markets is not incompatible with its inclusion in the Community structure so that it may contribute towards the attainment of the Community’s objectives.

Whereas, in accordance with the principle of financial autonomy enjoyed by the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Court of Auditors ‘has never attempted in any way to audit operations carried out by the European Investment Bank (EIB) from its own resources', EIB management of Community funds nonetheless raises the problem of auditing by the Court.

Following the amendments introduced by the Treaty of Amsterdam, Article 248 of the EC Treaty provides for the Court of Auditors to have right of access to the information necessary for the audit of Community expenditure and revenue managed by the Bank. In the Annual Report concerning the financial year 1999, the Court of Auditors exercises its new prerogative for the first time.

In March 2000, at the Lisbon European Council, the European leaders set themselves the goal of making Europe ‘the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world’ within ten years. Since then, one of the EIB’s priority operational goals has been to contribute to the implementation of this ambitious initiative, known as the ‘Lisbon Strategy’.

European Parliament Resolution of 15 February 2001 on the European Investment Bank (EIB) Annual Report for 1999. For the first time, a report is drawn up by the European Parliament on the activity of the EIB.

European Parliament Resolution of 5 February 2002 on the European Investment Bank (EIB) Annual Report for 2000. For the second consecutive year, a report is drawn up by the European Parliament on the activity of the EIB.

In his Opinion of 3 October 2002, Advocate General Francis Geoffrey Jacobs maintains that the investigative responsibility conferred on OLAF (the Anti-Fraud Office) by the Community legislator is not liable to undermine the operational autonomy of the European Investment Bank (EIB) or its reputation on the financial markets. He also emphasises that the EIB is a body which forms an integral part of the Community framework and that its financial interests are closely linked with the financial interests of the Community.

In a judgment delivered on 10 July 2003, the Court of Justice emphasises that the independence granted by the EC Treaty to the European Investment Bank for the purpose of carrying out the tasks assigned to it by the treaty is not intended to set it completely apart from the European Community and exempt it from every rule of Community law.

Background Note published during the EIB annual press conference in February 2003.

Dépliant expliquant le rôle du Groupe BEI, composé de la Banque européenne d'investissement (BEI) et du Fonds européen d'investissement (FEI).

Leaflet explaining the role of the EIB, its remits, activities and operating methods.

Interview with Corneille Brück taking place in 1993 published by Échos de l'Europe, the in-house publication of the European Commission in Luxembourg. Brück, at the time vice-president of the European Investment Bank, presents different aspects of the institution: its dual nature as a community body and as a bank, its mission, its decision-making bodies, its tasks, its seat, etc.

This article looks at the dual identity of the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the problems caused by its special legal status. Whereas its role as an intergovernmental bank grants it a substantial degree of independence, its role as a Community institution requires the EIB to be fully committed to serving the objectives of the European Union. This dual identity lies at the heart of the debate on the remit of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) regarding its monitoring of the bank's financial activities.

Le 16 novembre 1999, la Banque européenne d'investissement (BEI), par décision de son Comité de direction, refuse de se soumettre aux enquêtes de l'Office européen de lutte anti-fraude (OLAF). Elle allègue que tout contrôle externe serait contraire au principe d'autonomie financière que le traité lui accorde. Le 19 janvier 2000, la Commission européenne introduit un recours en annulation contre ladite décision. Giannangelo Marchegiani présente dans cet article les enjeux juridiques et économiques d'un conflit de nature constitutionnelle portant sur le statut de la Banque.

For the second year running, the activities of the European Investment Bank (EIB) were the focus of a European Parliament report. At the plenary session of the European Parliament held in Strasbourg on 5 February 2002, the President of the EIB, Philippe Maystadt, was invited to take part in the debate.

Published in a special supplement to La Voix du Luxembourg of April/May 2003 devoted to the European institutions within the Grand Duchy, this article describes the European Investment Bank: its nature, composition, organisation, function and activities.

In a climate of financial and economic crisis, the Heads of State or Government, meeting as the European Council on 11 and 12 December 2008, emphasise the action taken by the EIB, which is increasing its interventions.

European Parliament Resolution of 29 March 2012 on the European Investment Bank Annual Report for 2010.

Excerpt from the video made on its 40th anniversary by the European Investment Bank portraying the institution and its mission.

Excerpt from the film recording made on its 40th anniversary by the European Investment Bank showing the developments regarding the sectors receiving assistance from the Bank over the decades.

On 13 June 2003, Philippe Maystadt, President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), gives a lecture in Luxembourg entitled: ‘The role of the EIB in the new Member States of the European Union.’ In this audio recording, he begins by giving a presentation of the institution.