19 April 2023

Opening remarks by Commissioner McGuinness at the European Parliament plenary debate on digital euro

You've already heard many governments and central banks around the world are looking into possible Central Bank Digital Currencies.

And for the last two and a half years, we have examined whether a digital euro would be possible or desirable, and what the requirements would be.

We are doing that work hand-in-hand with the European Central Bank, discussing key aspects of a possible digital euro.

And that's why we very much welcome the political debate on the project.

The single currency is a symbol of the European Union, and of European unity.

Bringing the euro into the digital age is a big European project.

And it is a very political project.

And that means the digital euro needs to be supported by the European public and a strong democratic process.

So the European Parliament has a vital role to play in this debate – and of course you will soon be asked to look at our legislative proposal.

So just a few words on what a digital euro is, why we might need it, and some details of the legislative proposal.

So the basic question of what is a digital euro.

We all understand what physical cash is and how to use it.

Central banks issue coins and banknotes.

And they play a key role in monetary systems.

A coin or banknote is a direct liability on a central bank.

When we use private money, our confidence in it is based on the fact you can convert it back to central bank money.

A digital euro would be a complement to physical cash – which keeps its important role. Indeed I mentioned that in the last debate.

A digital euro would play a similar function to cash – providing us with access to central bank money in a digital world.

The digital euro – like cash today – will be backed by a central bank.

And that's also the real contrast to existing private digital currencies like crypto-assets – a digital euro would be safe, secure and sound.

So now to the why we would need a digital euro.

Let me talk about four main points here.

The first one is, in a rapidly digitalising economy, the share of payments in cash is declining, while digital payments are on the rise.

This trend is likely to continue, so we want to make sure the euro is fit for the future.

And we want to keep our access to public money in a digital world.

The second and related point – a digital euro could support financial inclusion....

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