MNI BRIEF: War Highlights Need For Digital Euro - Panetta

The European Central Bank could start the three-year process of developing the technical solutions needed to provide a digital euro at the end of 2023, Executive Board member Fabio Panetta said in a speech Monday, as he highlighted the intiative’s role in backstopping both public confidence and the EU’s strategic interests.

“As we face the most serious geopolitical crisis since the Cold War, old certainties are increasingly being challenged. The invasion of Ukraine has cast further doubt on the reliability of a global order that enabled unprecedented economic interdependence,” he said.

“In Europe, issuing a digital euro would also allow us to protect our strategic autonomy while remaining open in a world where technology and dependencies are increasingly being weaponised.”