Digital euro
We are used to paying by card, mobile phone or smartwatch. Yet there is still no secure and European solution for such digital payments. This is why the digital euro is being developed – to complement, and not replace, banknotes and coins. It would offer all the advantages of cash in the digital world, too: reliability, independence and control over one’s money.
The digital euro – or cash in digital form
The digital euro is designed to be an electronic counterpart to cash and would therefore complement banknotes and coins. Currently, European Union co-legislators are negotiating the legal framework for the digital euro with the European Commission. At the same time, its launch is being prepared by the European Central Bank and the national central banks of the euro area. The aim is to bring all the benefits of cash into the digital world. The digital euro would therefore be a real first: Everyone in the euro area would, for the first time, be able to use a public electronic means of payment – free of charge.
The digital euro will be ready in 2029 at the earliest. As a member of the alliance for the digital euro, the OeNB is playing an active role in developing digital central bank money in the euro area..
In this section
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Key facts
The digital euro would be an electronic means of payment that everyone in the euro area could use easily and free of charge. Like cash, it would be secure and protect privacy. Find out more in the FAQs and Fact check sections.
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Current status & timetable
People in the euro area will be able to pay with the digital euro in 2029 at the earliest. Once the legal framework is in place, the digital euro will be tested in a one-year pilot starting in mid-2027.
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Digital euro pilot
In-depth information on the digital euro pilot for market participants, interest groups and other stakeholders.
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Views on the digital euro
What are others saying about the digital euro? What do experts, interest groups and the general public think about this initiative?
