Digital euro

Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) - Eurozone - European Central Bank

A digital euro is the idea of a possible central bank digital currency issued by the European Central Bank (ECB).

Digital euro should complement cash - not replace it

"The Eurogroup... emphasised that the introduction of a digital euro, as well as its main features and design choices, require political decisions that should be discussed and taken at the political level.

Amongst other things, the statement also called for the environmental implications of the digital euro design to be considered and stressed that a digital euro should complement and not replace cash, and ensure a high level of privacy."

ACT blog - Naresh Aggarwal - Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and other digital currencies – March 2023.

CBDC should anchor monetary stability & complement private sector activities

"In a recent presentation by Fabio Panetta (member of the Executive Board of the ECB), at the Annual Congress of the European Economic Association, he noted:

o Digital public money is the monetary anchor in a digital world.

o The importance of safeguarding monetary sovereignty.

o The need to enhance competition and efficiency in payments.

But also the importance that a CBDC was not too successful if it crowds out private sector activity."

ACT blog - Naresh Aggarwal - Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and other digital currencies – September 2022.

No decision yet on euro CBDC

"In a recent speech the President of the ECB said that the central bank is launching a two-year investigation into a digital euro as more consumers switch from banknotes and cash.

The actual release of the ECB-backed cryptocurrency in the bloc’s 19 members could take another two years on top of the technology design and investigation stage (itself expected to take a couple of years).

In theory, if all goes to plan, the central bank could launch a digital currency by 2025 if European regulators give the project the green light.

She noted that the project would complement the existing banking system rather than trying to ‘jeopardise’ it adding that experiments to consider the merits of minting a ‘digital euro’ were going through a complex decision-making process.

The bank has not yet decided to issue a CBDC. "

Association of Corporate Treasurers - Update on the Payments landscape - September 2021.

See also

• Additionality
• Britcoin
• Cash
• Central bank
• Central bank digital currency
• Cryptocurrency
• Currency
• Digital currency
• Distributed ledger
• e-krona
• e-money
• Environmental concerns
• Eurogroup
• European Central Bank (ECB)
• European System of Central Banks
• Fiat currency
• Gold standard
• Libra
• Mint
• Monetary
• Money
• Multi-CBDC arrangement
• Retail central bank digital currency
• Sand Dollar
• Stablecoin
• Wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC)

Other resources

• Eurogroup statement on the digital euro project - January 2023
• Policy panel on central bank digital currencies - Fabio Panetta - European Central Bank - August 2022