"We are not commenting, because we view it as unsourced speculation," a Siemens spokesman said.

According to a report in the Financial Times, quoting a source with direct knowledge of the matter, Siemens withdrew more than 500 million euros ($683 million) from a large unnamed French bank two weeks ago and transferred it to the European Central Bank.

It was a sign, the newspaper said, of how companies were seeking havens for their cash during the eurozone debt crisis.

Siemens withdrew the money partly out of concerns about the future financial health of the unnamed bank and partly to benefit from the higher interests paid by the ECB, FT said.

Siemens is only one of a handful of large companies that have a banking licence allowing them to deposit cash directly with the ECB.

Contacted by AFP, the ECB also declined to comment.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011