Christine Lagarde Makes It Official: European Central Bank Exploring Launch of Digital Currency

European Central Bank (ECB) president Christine Lagarde has officially announced the launch of public consultations to explore the feasibility of issuing a digital euro.

After publishing a comprehensive report on the possible issuance of a digital euro on October 2nd, Christine Lagarde says the ECB is now ready to engage with the broader European community to assess their needs and expectations of a digital currency.

“We’ve started exploring the possibility of launching a digital euro. As Europeans are increasingly turning to digital in the ways they spend, save and invest, we should be prepared to issue a digital euro, if needed.

I’m also keen to hear your views on it”.

Lagarde’s announcement also arrives on the heels of ECB executive board member Fabio Panetta’s statement regarding the need for a digital Euro at the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament.

“We do not have a digital currency issued by the central bank that we can use for all our daily transactions. A digital euro would fill this gap and be a digital equivalent of euro banknotes. It would complement cash, not replace it.”

In a video accompanying Lagarde’s Twitter post, the former International Monetary Fund managing director says the ECB would like to know Europeans’ preferences regarding the services, functionalities, and use cases of a digital euro, and whether or not the digital euro should rely on intermediaries.

“We are still in the review and consideration stage, but we’ve just launched a public consultation so that consumers and Europeans can express their preference, and tell us whether they would be happy to use a digital euro just in the way they use a euro coin or a euro banknote, knowing that it is central bank money that is available and that they can rely upon.”

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