The European Commission has confirmed a bill for the digital euro will finally be proposed in 2023. Mairead McGuiness, the finance chief of the EC declared: “Our goal is to table legislation in early 2023. A targeted legislative consultation in the coming weeks.”
The European Central Bank is already exploring designs and systems for the digital euro and the prototype is expected to arrive in the latter half of 2023. In order for the digital euro to become a reality, the Eurozone governors will have to give their approval. If they approve it, the digital euro would become a reality in 2025.
The growing interest in CBDC is a result of concerns that the growing interest in crypto would lead to traditional finance falling out of favor.
Fabio Panetta, ECB Executive Board member, stated in November: “If we don’t satisfy this demand, then others will do it.”
According to research from the ECB, the digital euro could help lower interest rates, decrease cash use, and increase transactions speed. The latest countries to make progress in this field are Kenya and India.