Launch of preparation phase for digital euro welcomed by stakeholders, who stress need for broad public debate

On Wednesday 18 October, a number of stakeholders reacted to the decision by the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) to move on to the second phase of the digital euro project: the preparation phase (see EUROPE 13274/29).

The Eurogroup welcomed the decision. The Eurogroup is an informal body with no legislative powers. However, in parallel with the legislative deliberations of the co-legislators and the ECB’s preparatory work, the Eurogroup intends to continue to be involved in the project by providing a complementary political anchor to the work.

The European Banking Federation (EBF) has also reacted to the ECB Governing Council’s announcement. Wim Mijs, President and CEO of the EBF, said that his federation understood the need for the ECB to look at ways of preserving its role and maintaining a stable monetary anchor for the euro.

The EBF also supports the objective of strengthening Europe’s strategic autonomy in terms of payments.

Nevertheless, Mr Mijs stressed the complexity of the project and called for close collaboration between the public and private sectors to identify the opportunities and mitigate the risks associated with the project.

Regarding the work of the European Parliament and the EU Council on the legislative proposal to provide a legal framework for the digital euro project (see EUROPE 13211/11), which is a process independent of the ECB’s work, Wim Mijs is calling for a wide-ranging and in-depth public debate involving all stakeholders.

This is a concern shared by one stakeholder, the international Giesecke+Devrient group, which specialises in banknote printing and supplies smart cards and security solutions.

Giesecke+Devrient stresses that a project of this scale can only be implemented with the support of a broad political and social consensus.

The group notes, however, that scepticism about the project is often the result of mistaken assumptions, such as the fear that the digital euro will replace the euro in its physical form. (Original version in French by Émilie Vanderhulst)