According to Cipollone, EU residents will be able to use the digital euro freely, without any concerns about their privacy being compromised. In fact, the privacy standards for the digital euro are expected to surpass those of existing commercial products.
“The digital euro will enable individuals to make online payments with exceptional privacy measures in place. In fact, the level of privacy protection will exceed what is currently offered by commercial payment solutions.”
Cipollone also highlighted the need for the ECB to identify infrastructure providers for the state-backed cryptocurrency. However, he emphasized the importance of flexibility in agreements with these providers, as many technical requirements and standards for the digital euro are still being developed. He also noted that delaying the search for suppliers until after the final decision to launch the digital currency could significantly impede the project’s timeline.
The ECB member stressed that the digital euro should function in a manner similar to traditional fiat currency. Therefore, a unified set of rules and requirements for the digital euro must be established. He likened this set of rules to government-owned railroad tracks, which are utilized by various private companies.
Concluding his remarks, Cipollone clarified that the digital euro will not offer interest income to avoid competing with savings accounts and other financial institutions. He also shared that private companies and financial institutions will be prohibited from owning digital euros. Instead, a proposed solution will link bank accounts with digital euro wallets, allowing for direct usage of the currency in payments without the need to initially purchase digital euros or replenish wallets.
A survey conducted in November 2023 revealed that only 20% of Europeans expressed readiness to use the digital euro for payments.