Piero Cipollone, a member of the European Central Bank (ECB), presented the digital euro as a payment instrument equivalent to cash. According to his statements, it is designed to strengthen Europe’s financial sovereignty and reduce dependence on payment infrastructures from abroad.
According to Piero Cipollone, a member of the ECB, the digital euro will become as widely accepted by the public as cash did. This is because it will be widely accessible, free to use, and dynamic for everyday payments.
One of the key aspects of the digital euro is that it will improve user privacy, ensuring that only the payer and the recipient know the transaction details. For online payments, data will be encrypted so that only coded identifiers for the payer, recipient, and amount are processed.
Furthermore, another key point is that it will have virtually no restrictions on its use. This means that users will be able to seamlessly integrate it into their daily lives. In this way, user autonomy is preserved, and restrictive monetary mechanisms are avoided.
Cipollone directly linked the justification for the digital euro to strategic autonomy. He pointed out that approximately two-thirds of card transactions where the euro predominates are processed through international systems. These dynamics cause costs to increase for both retailers and consumers.
How are the developments in the digital euro progressing?
The Eurosystem remains in an advanced preparatory phase. The European Council’s push for general guidance by the end of 2025 has already passed. Meanwhile, the ECB and Cipollone are awaiting the formal adoption of the necessary European legislation during 2026, which will define the legal boundaries and governance.
Subject to this legislative step, pilot exercises and some initial transactions are planned for mid-2027, with a possible first issuance anticipated around 2029.
However, some obstacles remain to the full implementation of the digital euro. If the 2026 legislation progresses as anticipated, the 2027 pilots will shift the discussion from design to operational risk, scalability, and merchant adoption.
For market participants and businesses, the immediate implication is clear: attention is now focused on the 2026 legislative process and the design decisions it will solidify.
