Piero Cipollone, the European Central Bank’s Executive Board member who chairs the Eurosystem High-Level Task Force on the Digital Euro, sat down with ClassCNBC to make his case for why Europe needs its own central bank digital currency. His pitch boiled down to one word: independence.
The interview, which aired on July 2, comes at a moment of genuine momentum for the project. The European Parliament’s ECON committee approved its regulatory position on the digital euro on June 23 with a 43-14 vote and one abstention, clearing the path for trilogue negotiations that could finalize legislation by the end of 2026.
A six-year journey from concept to near-reality
The digital euro project kicked off in 2020. The ECB moved through a preparation phase running from November 2023 to October 2025, and now the political machinery is catching up to the technical groundwork.
A 12-month pilot is planned for the second half of 2027. If that goes smoothly, a broader launch is penciled in for 2029.
