Interview with Piero Cipollone, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted by Thalia Neophytou on 6 February 2026

8 February 2026

The idea of a digital euro has raised many questions across Europe. Could you explain why the ECB is moving ahead with it and what practical impact it could have for citizens, households and businesses?

First, let me clarify that we have not yet issued a digital euro and we will not do so until we have the legislation in place.

Having said that, we think that issuing the digital euro is a good idea, especially for citizens. It will preserve their freedom to pay with money issued by their central bank – their money. And today cash cannot be used in many cases – for example, when paying online. The digital euro would let you keep the benefits of cash for those use cases where central bank money cannot currently be used. In short, with the digital euro we are creating a digital version of cash.

For citizens, the major advantage is simplicity. With…