28.4.1999 Official Journal of the European Communities L110/33 DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK of 1 December 1998 laying down the measures necessary for the paying-up of the capital of the European Central Bank by the non-participating national central banks (ECB/1998/14) (1999/285/EC) THE GENERAL COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK, Having regard to the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank (herein- after referred to as the ‘Statute’) and in particular to Article 48 thereof, (1)  Whereas the European Central Bank (ECB) was established on 1 June 1998; (2) Whereas the capital of the ECB shall amount to ECU 5000 million and shall become operational as of 1 June 1998; (3)  Whereas the national banks of the Member States shall be the sole subscribers to and holders of the capital of the ECB; (4 Whereas the subscription to the ECB’s capital shall be in accordance with Article 1 of the ECB Decision on the method to be applied for deter- mining the national central banks’ percentage shares in the key for the capital of the European Central Bank (ECB/1998/1); (5)  Whereas the Governing Council of the ECB shall determine the extent to which and the form in which the capital shall be paid up; (6) Whereas national central banks of non-partici- pating Member States shall not pay up their subscribed capital unless the General Council of the ECB decides that a minimal percentage has to be paid up as a contribution to the operational costs of the ECB; (7)  Whereas, in accordance with Article 2.1 of EU Council Regulation (EC) No 1103/97 of 17 June 1997, the euro shall be substituted for the ECU on a 1:1 basis as from 1 January 1999, HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: Article 1 Extent to which the capital shall be paid up by the national central banks of the non-participating Member States 1.1.  The national central banks of non-participating Member States shall pay up 5 % of their subscription to the ECB’s capital. The amounts are due as at 1 June 1998. 1.2.  The Annex to this Decision specifies the indi- vidual amounts due from each of the national central banks of the non-participating Member States. Article 2 Manner in which the capital shall be paid up Amounts due to the ECB from the national central banks of the non-participating Member States in accordance with the previous Article shall be settled by offsetting them against repayments of their respective contributions to the financial resources of the European Monetary Insti- tute, and this settlement shall constitute payments of the subscribed capital of the ECB. Article 3 Final provision This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Communities. Done at Frankfurt am Main, 1 December 1998. The President of the ECB Willem F. DUISENBERG