The European Central Bank (ECB) said it is looking for experts to help draft rules on how a digital euro would work in everyday payments in anticipation of legislation approving a central bank digital currency (CBDC) and the decision by the bank’s governing council to issue one.
The ECB has opened requests for experts to help draft parts of the digital euro regulation relating specifically to ATMs and card payment terminals used in stores, it said on Thursday.
ECB President Christine Lagarde said in December that the bank had completed its technical and preparatory work on the digital currency and that it was now up to political institutions to act. The project, which aims to create a public digital payment method, is being reviewed by the European Council and the European Parliament. If approved, the central bank has flagged a possible implementation by 2029.
One line of work will define how ATMs and point-of-sale terminals process digital payments in euros. This includes how devices connect, how they support offline transactions, and how current payment standards can support the new currency. The goal is to ensure that people pay with a digital euro at the checkout or withdraw it from ATMs across the eurozone.
A second group will design a certification process for payment tools and infrastructure. It will set out how suppliers test and approve systems used to accept digital payments in euros in stores and payment networks.
While the central bank works on the project, a group of 12 European banks are moving forward with their own version of a euro-pegged token. Banks including BBVA, ING and PNB Paribas have formed the Qivalis project, a plan to implement a euro-pegged stablecoin in the second half of 2026, with the goal of offering blockchain payments without relying on dollar-backed tokens.
