• The ECB has urged EU lawmakers to complete digital euro legislation by the end of 2026, warning that delays could jeopardise its planned 2029 issuance.
  • A 12-month pilot is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2027, involving Eurosystem staff, payment providers and selected merchants, with 36 market operators participating.
  • The ECB is pitching the digital euro as a way to strengthen European payment sovereignty, citing dependence on non-European firms for card payments and the growing influence of dollar-pegged stablecoins.

 

The European Central Bank (ECB) has urged EU lawmakers to complete the digital euro legislation before the end of 2026.

The ECB, through its executive board member Piero Cipollone, made the appeal in a speech on Tuesday, November 10, at the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament.

The speech, which is titled “Cash and the digital euro: two sides of the same coin,” comes five days after Cipollone struck a calmer note, telling a card-industry conference on November 5 that the bank was still on track to issue the currency in 2029.

Cipollone told lawmakers that the uncertain geopolitical environment has made timely progress on the digital euro “essential to strengthen Europe’s autonomy in payments.”

Five days from reassurance to warning

When he delivered the keynote at the eighth International Conference of Regional Card Schemes and Retail Financial Market Infrastructures on November 5, Cipollone said the 12-month pilot would begin in the second half of 2027.

He repeated similar talking points in his speech to lawmakers on Tuesday, saying that they are moving ahead with preparations for the pilot.

Cipollone said, “Starting in the second half of 2027, the pilot will involve Eurosystem staff, participating payment service providers (PSPs) and selected merchants offering everyday services – for example in canteens – at the ECB and participating national central banks.”

One of the points he raised on November 5 is that issuance in 2029 was still possible. However, he added a caveat, which is that lawmakers have to finish the law this year.

He sees the project as a remedy for a fragmented market in which 13 euro-area countries depend on non-European firms for in-store card payments.

When a European Parliament vote slipped in April from May 5 to June 23, Cipollone shrugged it off at a Peterson Institute discussion.

“We have been patient for three years, it doesn’t cost much to wait a couple more months,” he said, adding that the 2029 timeline would hold as long as final legislation arrived by year-end.

The legislative clock is the whole story

The chances of hitting the 2029 target depend largely on the timeliness of the rulemaking. EU lawmakers are meant to finish the law in 2026 to make the timeline feasible; however, negotiation is still ongoing with roughly seven weeks left in the year.

Cipollone has said talks among the European Parliament, the Council of the EU and the European Commission are underway and expected to close this year. Those talks follow a committee vote in June, when the Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee adopted its position by 43 votes to 14 with one abstention, setting demands on privacy, fees and holding limits.

Parliament rapporteur Fernando Navarrete Rojas said the digital euro would “complement cash, never replace it.” The Parliament later voted in July to open negotiations with member states.

Why Frankfurt keeps pointing at foreign card firms

The ECB’s case rests on control of payment rails. Cipollone sees the digital euro as a question of sovereignty. He said in an October interview that non-European companies govern two-thirds of card payments in the euro area.

“In recent years Europe has learned that, for some essential services, we cannot rely only on third parties. We saw this with energy, and we’re seeing it today with defense. And the same is true for payments,” he said. 

He added that sovereignty does not mean shutting outside firms out, only having the option to choose.

The ECB has also pitched the project against privately issued stablecoins. President Christine Lagarde has promoted it as an alternative to dollar-pegged tokens, warning that their spread could erode central banks’ grip on monetary policy. 

The planned pilot would run real transactions by ECB and national central bank staff, with 36 market operators taking part.

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FAQs

When could the digital euro launch?

The ECB is targeting issuance in 2029, preceded by a 12-month pilot starting in the second half of 2027, but only if lawmakers finalize the legislation in 2026.

Why does the ECB want a digital euro?

Cipollone argues it would reduce Europe's reliance on non-European payment firms, noting that such companies handle two-thirds of euro-area card payments and that 13 euro-area countries depend on them for in-store card transactions.

What stage is the legislation at?

Negotiations among the European Parliament, the Council of the EU and the European Commission are ongoing and expected to conclude this year, following a June committee vote of 43 to 14 in favor of the Parliament's position.

Disclaimer. The information provided is not trading advice. Cryptopolitan.com holds no liability for any investments made based on the information provided on this page. We strongly recommend independent research and/or consultation with a qualified professional before making any investment decisions.

Hannah Collymore

Hannah is a writer and editor with nearly a decade of blog writing and event reporting experience in the crypto space. At Cryptopolitan, Hannah contributes to the news page, reporting and analyzing the latest developments in DeFi, RWA, crypto regulation, AI and frontier tech industries. She graduated from Arcadia university with a degree in Business Administration.

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