European Central Bank President Mario Draghi defended his institution against criticisms that a board member divulged market-sensitive information to a gathering that included hedge fund managers at a speech last month 12 hours before the remarks were made public, an incident that raised questions about the bank’s communications policies. Mr. Draghi wrote in a letter to the European Ombudsman dated Wednesday, and published on the ECB’s website Thursday, that the frontloading of bond purchases in the ECB’s quantitative easing program, which executive board member Benoit Coeuré announced at a private event on May 18, w ... (full story)