The paper presents the issue of the financial independence of the European Central Bank, which is a fundamental factor for its proper functioning. In the course of the argument, the basic definitions and the means by which it is implemented are synthetically described. The main objective of this article is to answer the question of whether the European Central Bank has guaranteed instruments with sufficient potential to ensure the functioning of the principle of financial independence in practice. The analysis leads to the conclusion that ensuring effective tools guaranteeing financial independence is a prerequisite for the existence of other categories of independence. Therefore, it is crucial to have legal bases that counteract, in particular, the threat associated with the potential involvement of individual Member States’ governments in financing the ECB’s activities. The issue is presented from the perspective of doctrinal views as well as the binding legal framework and the practice of the Bank’s operation