The European Central Bank cautioned that rising stablecoin use may shift deposits away from banks, weakening banks’ lending capacity and the transmission of monetary policy across the euro area.
A senior European Central Bank policymaker warned that implementing a digital euro could shave €4–6 billion off European banks’ revenues over a four-year rollout. The estimate underscores potential disruption to bank business models as policymakers design the retail CBDC.
Reports that ECB President Christine Lagarde is considering an early exit arrive as the EU advances key decisions on the digital euro. The potential leadership change raises questions about continuity in design, timing and regulatory stance.
ECB policymaker Cipollone said the digital euro will be structured to protect European card networks and keep banks central to the euro-area payments system, aiming to preserve incumbent infrastructure and stability.
The ECB will accept certain DLT-issued securities as eligible collateral in Eurosystem credit operations from March 30, and Ripple has been granted a full EU license — a sign of growing regulatory acceptance for tokenized finance.
The ECB is targeting a 2029 launch for a pan-European digital euro as lawmakers move forward; official Cipollone has been addressing banking concerns and privacy safeguards. The push aims to balance innovation in payments with financial stability and data protection.
ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said the digital euro will provide essential infrastructure for retail payments and help the euro area achieve payment-processing self-sufficiency. He made the remarks Thursday, framing the project as a tool for sovereignty and resilience.
European Central Bank executive Piero Cipollone said a European-run payments system is a strategic imperative as geopolitical tensions make the global environment increasingly “weaponised.” The comment reinforces the push for a digital euro to protect payments autonomy.
ECB chief economist Philip Lane warned political pressure on the Fed could raise U.S. term premiums and unsettle the dollar’s global role; investors are increasingly eyeing Bitcoin as a non-sovereign alternative.
The Council of the European Union has approved moving forward with the ECB’s digital euro project, endorsing both an online model and a privacy-focused offline variant. The decision clears a political hurdle toward pilots and technical development.