Member of the ECB Executive Board Piero Cipollone welcomed the European Parliament’s broad support for the Single Currency Package, adopted on 9 July, and warned that a swift conclusion of the trilogue negotiations is needed to adopt the package by the end of 2026 as set out in the One Europe, One Market Roadmap. Legal certainty from the package would enable the final steps of digital‐euro preparations, whereas any delay could push back the issuance and increase reliance on foreign payment providers.
In September the Eurosystem launched Pontes, a platform that links market distributed‐ledger‐technology (DLT) systems with the TARGET Services. The launch attracted 18 market participants and DLT operators on day one, with additional operators expected to join. On 2 November the European Stability Mechanism settled its first digitally native benchmark bond of €1 billion on Pontes, marking a shift from experimental to operational tokenised finance.
Preparations for the digital‐euro pilot are advancing. A beta version without legal‐tender status will be tested from the second half of 2027, involving Eurosystem staff, selected payment‐service providers (PSPs) and merchants such as canteens at the ECB and national central banks. In July the ECB announced 36 PSPs chosen from more than 50 applicants, representing a mix of banks and non‐bank providers across varied business models and locations.
The pilot’s scope is being broadened. A September call invited online and mobile merchants to join, with the final merchant selection slated for early 2027. Parallelly, the ECB launched a new call for expressions of interest on its digital‐euro innovation platform; activities from January to June 2027 will test conditional payments and explore artificial‐intelligence applications in payments.
Cash innovation also featured prominently. In July the ECB invited the public to comment on ten design proposals for the next euro banknote series; the survey attracted almost 10 million responses from across the euro area, underscoring strong public interest. Results will guide the Governing Council’s design decision expected by year‐end, with the first new banknotes projected to circulate in the early 2030s.
Cipollone reiterated the need to preserve cash accessibility, supporting mandatory cash‐acceptance rules, widespread cash access and resilient cash infrastructure. He noted that the 25th anniversary of euro banknotes and coins will be marked in two months, a symbolic moment as digital payments grow while cash remains widely used.
Finally, he stressed that the adoption of the legal framework contained in the Single Currency Package is essential to finalise the digital‐euro rulebook, confirm its design and enable a phased rollout that balances innovation with consumer protection.