Digital Euro

The European Central Bank has launched Pontes, a wholesale platform designed to connect distributed-ledger market infrastructure with Eurosystem payment rails. The system is aimed at eligible financial institutions settling tokenized assets in central-bank money, while the retail digital euro remains on a separate path.

The European Central Bank is inviting e-commerce and mobile-commerce merchants to participate in a 12-month digital euro pilot beginning in the second half of 2027. The test will examine online, offline, in-store, mobile and peer-to-peer payments using a beta version that resembles the digital euro but is not legal tender.

European Central Bank officials are pushing back against fears that the digital euro could become a surveillance tool, arguing that the Eurosystem would be unable to connect users with their purchases. Civil society groups remain unconvinced, warning that privacy promises must be backed by technical safeguards rather than institutional assurances alone.

The European Central Bank has selected 36 banks and payment companies for a 12-month digital euro pilot scheduled to begin in the second half of 2027. The trial will test a beta version of the proposed central bank digital currency across online, offline, in-store and e-commerce payments using ECB and national central bank staff as users.

Reports suggest this CBDC could be based on the Ethereum or Solana blockchains — but right now, the European Central Bank has other things to worry about.