Overview
- The EU Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee approved its negotiating position on the digital euro by 43‑14 with 1 abstention, a decision that opens trilogue talks with the Commission and member states.
- The committee’s text requires privacy by design, offline token payments that work device‑to‑device, and cryptographic tools such as zero‑knowledge proofs so the ECB would not hold users’ personal payment data.
- Lawmakers set strict private holding limits and rules barring firms from hoarding central‑bank digital money to protect bank deposits and financial stability, with the Commission to propose an upper bound based on ECB advice and regular reviews.
- The draft would compel most merchants to accept the digital euro while protecting cash users through rules banning pure no‑cash practices and guaranteeing access to coins and notes for vulnerable groups.
- If the three institutions agree the law by end‑2026, the ECB plans an extensive technical testing phase starting mid‑2027, with a possible broader consumer rollout envisaged from 2029, but negotiators still must settle caps, fees, offline limits and supervisory details.