The European Parliament voted to move the digital euro into interinstitutional negotiations, sending the eurozone’s planned central bank digital currency toward implementation. Lawmakers must now agree a common proposal with member states, with the ECB positioning the currency against private stablecoins.
The European Parliament advanced the digital euro on Thursday with 416 votes in favor, 169 against, and 22 abstentions, pushing the eurozone’s planned central bank digital currency into a new legal stage. The vote clears the way for lawmakers to negotiate the details of the currency with member states and settle on a common proposal.
What parliament backed
First proposed in 2023 as a way for Europe to protect its monetary sovereignty and put digital cash in citizens’ hands, the digital euro now enters formal negotiations. Fernando Navarrete Rojas, the rapporteur who will lead those talks, stressed that the currency would be a new electronic form of money rather than a replacement for physical cash.
According to Navarrete Rojas: “The digital euro will complement cash, never replace it.”
Parliament set out several positions for the negotiations. It wants wide acceptance of the currency, with exceptions for small and micro enterprises that do not take other digital payments, alongside privacy safeguards for transactions. Basic services — opening accounts and managing funds, including access to at least one payment instrument — would be free. In the early phases, a cap on how many digital euros a person can hold would protect the wider financial system.
The ECB’s case against stablecoins
The European Central Bank has been preparing the ground ahead of the vote, forming partnerships with Europe’s main payment standard providers to ensure the currency fits into existing rails. The ECB frames the digital euro as a defense against the growing influence of private money, including stablecoins.
Piero Cipollone, an ECB Executive Board Member, argued the digital euro would reduce Europe’s dependence on external providers and support pan-European payment options for consumers and merchants, countering foreign stablecoin solutions.
Source: Bitcoin.com News
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