ECB split is brewing on President Lagarde's signature crisis-fighting tool

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde’s signature crisis-fighting tool is becoming the focus of disagreement among policymakers in what could amount to her first major test of discipline.

Governing Council members face a potential rift over how much their emergency bond-purchase program should stay weighted toward weaker countries such as Italy, according to multiple conversations with central-bank officials. While the debate remains hypothetical for now, it could crystallize as the economy emerges from the coronavirus pandemic. The danger is that such friction undermines a program unveiled at the height of the crisis to reassure investors of the ECB’s resolve in defending