The European Central Bank (ECB) has enlisted 36 payment firms to test the digital euro, its answer to the dollar stablecoins spreading through European payments. The central bank named the pilot group on Tuesday, July 14.

Deutsche Bank, UniCredit, and Revolut lead a roster that also includes US-based Stripe and European processors Adyen, SumUp, and Worldline.

A Digital Euro Pilot Built to Counter Dollar Stablecoins

Brussels frames the project as monetary sovereignty. ECB President Christine Lagarde has rejected euro stablecoin proposals, arguing a public digital currency should fill the role instead. The central bank has also warned about deposit risks from expanding private euro tokens.

The mismatch is stark. Dollar-pegged tokens account for nearly all of the $306 billion stablecoin market, per CoinGecko data. Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC) alone hold a combined 84%. Circle’s EURC, the largest euro-pegged token, circulates about $424 million, over 400 times smaller than USDT.

Notably, Tuesday’s announcement avoids naming stablecoins, framing the pilot around testing and user experience. The confrontation reading comes from Lagarde and other officials, who cast the project as protection for Europe’s monetary autonomy. The roster itself carries some irony, with US-based Stripe testing Europe’s independence project.

MiCA has already redrawn the field. Revolut, one of the 36, recently moved to delist USDT in Europe after Tether skipped authorization. The MiCA transition period ended this month, closing the EU market to unlicensed platforms.

What the 36 Firms Will Test From 2027

The pilot begins in the second half of 2027 and runs for 12 months. More than 50 firms applied for the 36 slots. According to the pilot framework, participants will test a beta digital euro in person-to-person, in-store, and e-commerce payments.

The exercise spans the ECB and 19 euro-area central banks. The beta currency will mirror the final product technically but will carry no legal tender status.

“Staff at participating central banks will have the opportunity to make beta digital euro payments from person to person (both online and offline) and from person to business (both at the physical point of sale, including Software Point of Sale, and via e-commerce, including mobile payments),” The ECB confirmed this in its Tuesday statement.

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The politics moved first. Parliament approved final negotiations in a 416-169 vote on July 9, and talks with member states and the Commission opened Monday.

Negotiators led by Spanish MEP Fernando Navarrete aim to finish the law this year. That would keep potential issuance on track for 2029.

For consumers, nothing changes before 2027. If the project reaches issuance, Europeans would hold central bank money in digital form, spendable in shops and online like cash.

After five years of study, the pilot will show whether public digital money can match the convenience that made dollar stablecoins the default.

Critics still argue the EU’s digital euro plan could hand advantages to US firms. The 169 votes against suggest the fight is not over.

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Source: BeInCrypto