The European Central Bank's record streak of interest rate hikes has had an even stronger impact on bank lending than in previous tightening cycles, the ECB's chief economist Philip Lane said on Wednesday.

"The overall transmission of monetary policy has been robust and, if anything, been stronger than in previous cycles," Lane told a conference at the Bank of Finland. (Reporting by Anne Kauranen Writing by Francesco Canepa in Frankfurt Editing by Peter Graff)