An ECB official declared that the upcoming two-year investigation into the digital euro isn’t a guarantee that it will also become a reality.
Jürgen Schaaf, who works as an advisor to the senior management of the Market Infrastructure and Payments business area of the European Central Bank, declared that the bank plans to experiment with digital euro and use the results from the investigation to see whether a CBDC will really be created. Schaaf said:
“This is still not a decision to introduce or issue a digital euro. After these phases, we will have to assess properly whether the potential benefits outweigh the possible disadvantages and then take a profound decision.”
The ECB will begin its two-year digital euro trial in October. It will focus on the retail digital euro aka the one that regular people can use in order to buy goods and services. Schaaf further added:
“We see this digital Europe project as provision of a retail payment instrument … The current setup is more focused on retail that’s embedded in the mandate. Having said that, we will not stop issuing and providing cash, the digital euro, when it comes, would be a compliment not a substitute for cash.”
Source: CoinDesk.com