ECB selects 36 PSP European countries for the digital euro pilot
14 July 2026 Europe
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The European Central Bank (ECB) has selected 36 payment service providers (PSP) from across the euro area to participate in the digital euro pilot.
The ECB says that the pilot exercise is crucial for testing the digital euro’s technical functionality and operational processes, as well as for refining user experience.
The pilot aims to support the ongoing preparatory work for the potential issuance of a digital euro, and is due to start during the second half of 2027 for a period of 12 months.
Following a call for expression of interest in March 2026, the Eurosystem received more than 50 applications from PSPs, reflecting strong interest and engagement from the market.
Applicants were evaluated based on a set of pre-defined eligibility criteria.
The selected participants, including banks and non-bank service providers, span a broad range of business models and sizes and offer broad geographical coverage, ensuring a diverse and representative testing and learning environment for the digital euro, ECB explains.
The pilot will take place at the ECB and 19 national central banks across the euro area, namely in Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Finland.
Piero Cipollone, ECB Executive Board Member, who chairs the High-Level Task Force on a digital euro, says: “The strong market interest in the pilot shows the private sector’s readiness to engage actively and quickly advance with the digital euro project to strengthen the European payments landscape.
“We look forward to deeper engagement as we work with and learn alongside European payment service providers in developing a secure, efficient, and inclusive digital euro.”
The ECB says that the pilot exercise is crucial for testing the digital euro’s technical functionality and operational processes, as well as for refining user experience.
The pilot aims to support the ongoing preparatory work for the potential issuance of a digital euro, and is due to start during the second half of 2027 for a period of 12 months.
Following a call for expression of interest in March 2026, the Eurosystem received more than 50 applications from PSPs, reflecting strong interest and engagement from the market.
Applicants were evaluated based on a set of pre-defined eligibility criteria.
The selected participants, including banks and non-bank service providers, span a broad range of business models and sizes and offer broad geographical coverage, ensuring a diverse and representative testing and learning environment for the digital euro, ECB explains.
The pilot will take place at the ECB and 19 national central banks across the euro area, namely in Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Finland.
Piero Cipollone, ECB Executive Board Member, who chairs the High-Level Task Force on a digital euro, says: “The strong market interest in the pilot shows the private sector’s readiness to engage actively and quickly advance with the digital euro project to strengthen the European payments landscape.
“We look forward to deeper engagement as we work with and learn alongside European payment service providers in developing a secure, efficient, and inclusive digital euro.”
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