European Central Bank Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said at the MNI Connect Webcast that Europe faces a growing risk of fragmentation across tokenized platforms if it does not build a pan-European digital payment solution that can cover everyday transactions. He said such fragmentation could weaken Europe’s resilience and monetary sovereignty. Cipollone described the ECB’s objective as creating a digital euro that can be exchanged across banks and used for daily payments, while stressing that the project is not designed to replace banks. Instead, he said, it would give banks the infrastructure they need to compete in the digital era and broaden the reach and use cases of their own solutions. The ECB has not yet decided whether to issue a digital euro, he added, but aims to complete the legislative process by the end of 2026. If the project moves ahead, a 12-month pilot would begin in the second half of 2027, with a possible formal launch in 2029.
European Central Bank Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said at the MNI Connect Webcast that, without a pan-European digital payment solution covering everyday transactions, fragmentation risks across tokenized platforms could rise and weaken Europe’s resilience and monetary sovereignty.
He said the ECB’s objective should be to build a digital euro that can be exchanged across banks and used for daily transactions. Cipollone added, 「Our goal is not to replace the role of banks.」
According to Cipollone, the digital euro would provide banks with the infrastructure they need to compete in the digital era and help them expand the reach and use cases of their own solutions.
He also said the ECB has not yet decided whether to issue a digital euro, but plans to complete the legislative process by the end of 2026. If the project proceeds, a 12-month pilot would start in the second half of 2027, and a formal launch could follow in 2029.
The ECB first proposed introducing a digital euro in October 2020 as a complementary digital payment option to cash. Critics have argued that such a central bank digital currency could give EU officials a way to monitor or even control how residents spend money.
Cipollone had also said in September 2025 that a digital euro would ensure that all Europeans can access a free and widely accepted digital means of payment at any time, even during major disruptions.
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