ECB prepares for the worst: Life without the Bundesbank

The European Central Bank (ECB) is drafting contingency plans to carry out its multi-trillion bond-buying program without the Bundesbank in case Germany's top court forces the main participant in the scheme to quit, four sources told Reuters.

In this worst-case scenario, the ECB would launch an unprecedented legal action against the German central bank, its biggest shareholder, to bring it back into the program, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The moves would likely mark a moment of truth for the euro, testing Germany's commitment to a currency it played the biggest role in creating and forcing it to tackle some deep-seated reservations within the country about ECB policies.
Germany's constitutional court has given the ECB until early August to justify its massive buying of government bonds or continue the scheme without the Bundesbank, which...