EU Parliament Approves Digital Euro for 2029

The European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee approved the introduction of a digital euro, a central‑bank digital currency to be launched by 2029. The move aims to reduce the EU’s reliance on payment systems dominated by the United States, where Visa and Mastercard handle more than 60% of card transactions in the euro area. The digital euro will be issued and guaranteed by the European Central Bank, complementing cash and existing banking services, and will be stored in dedicated wallets with a usage limit yet to be defined. Payments can be made online and offline, offering a higher degree of privacy while the ECB will not directly identify users. Commercial banks and payment providers will deliver services, and they will be compensated for participation; merchants are expected to face lower transaction fees. The approval follows similar initiatives in China, Russia and discussions in the United States about a digital dollar. Final parliamentary voting is slated for July, with negotiations among the 27 EU member states to conclude before the end of the year.