Digital euro: ECB eyes a 2027 pilot

What happened

The European Central Bank is preparing to test the digital euro with real transactions in 2027, Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said in an interview with the Italian newspaper Milano Finanza, which the ECB published on Saturday, 24 October. According to Cointelegraph, he said the euro area could roll out a digital euro as early as 2029, but only if EU lawmakers finish the legislation first. “We hope that the regulation will be adopted by the end of the year,” he said. The timing fits a wider conversation about cash: in Germany, “Bargeld” (cash) was one of Google's daily trending searches on 26 October, driven by articles about how much emergency cash people keep at home.

The pilot and the timeline

In July the ECB selected 36 payment service providers for a 12-month pilot planned for the second half of 2027, out of more than 50 applications, EconoTimes reports. On the legal side, the EU Council agreed its position in December 2025 and the European Parliament adopted its own on 9 July 2026, according to the ECB, and negotiations between the institutions have started. The ECB's Governing Council will only decide on issuing a digital euro after the regulation is adopted, and the Eurosystem says it aims to be ready for a possible first issuance in 2029.

Digital euro vs cash

The ECB stresses that the digital euro would sit alongside banknotes and coins rather than replace them, and that cash would remain legal tender. The digital euro itself would also be legal tender. According to the ECB's own FAQ, it would work offline as well as online, and offline payments would offer cash-like privacy, with only the payer and the payee knowing the details. Basic use would be free for individuals, holdings would pay no interest, and each person could only hold a limited amount. The ECB has not set that limit, but says hypothetical limits of up to €3,000 per person were analysed.

Why the ECB wants it

Cipollone presents the digital euro as a question of sovereignty: a public, European way to pay at a time when much of the region's card payments run through schemes based outside the EU. The ECB reports that international schemes handle around two-thirds of card transactions in the euro area. Cipollone also pointed to how fast habits are changing: in Italy, online payments rose from 6% of day-to-day transactions in 2019 to 24% in 2024, according to EconoTimes. The ECB would not run accounts for the public itself; banks and other authorised providers would distribute the digital euro and keep the customer relationship.

Why it matters for payments

For people who pay and send money in euros, the digital euro would be one more option next to cash, cards and bank transfers, not a replacement for them. As Crypto Briefing summarised the ECB's position, it is not meant to replace physical euros or existing private payment solutions. So if you are checking how long a bank transfer takes, or using a money transfer app for an international money transfer, nothing changes on this timeline: the digital euro is still a project.

What to watch next

Watch whether EU institutions agree on the final regulation by the end of 2026, as the ECB hopes, how holding limits and privacy rules are written into that law, and how the 2027 pilot works with the selected providers. Until the law is adopted and the Governing Council decides, the digital euro remains a plan, not a product.

What it means for Odix Pay users

Odix Pay does not offer the digital euro, and the project is still years away. For euro payments today, you can get a personal EUR IBAN in your own name to receive money, and use Odix Pay money transfer to send money to bank accounts abroad, with the fee and exchange rate shown before you confirm. If you are comparing options for an international money transfer, our guide on how to send money abroad lists what to check first. Availability depends on your country, and fees are shown in the app. More stories in the Odix Pay newsroom.