ECB Confirms DLT Transactions Coming in 2026 as Digital Euro Privacy Debate Heats Up
The European Central Bank will enable blockchain-based transactions to settle in central bank money by 2026, marking a pivotal step toward integrating distributed ledger technology into Europe's financial infrastructure. Executive Board member Piero Cipollone emphasized the need for public-private collaboration to shape the future of money, underscoring the ECB's commitment to innovation while addressing unresolved privacy concerns surrounding the digital euro.
Technical work on the digital euro continues, with the proposed CBDC designed to function as a pan-European digital cash alternative. The MOVE aims to reduce reliance on private intermediaries by allowing DLT platforms to settle transactions directly in central bank money, mitigating fragmentation risks in tokenized markets.
