Business Express is an online portal that covers the latest developments in the world of business and finance. From startups and entrepreneurship to mergers and acquisitions, Business Express provides reporting on the stories that matter most to business leaders and decision-makers.The website publishes news, press releases, opinion and advertorials on various financial organizations, products and services which are commissioned from various Companies, Organizations, PR agencies, Bloggers etc. These commissioned articles are commercial in nature. This is not to be considered as financial advice and should be considered only for information purposes. It does not reflect the views or opinion of our website and is not to be considered an endorsement or a recommendation. We cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information provided with respect to your individual or personal circumstances. Please seek Professional advice from a qualified professional before making any financial decisions. We link to various third-party websites, affiliate sales networks, and to our advertising partners websites. When you view or click on certain links available on our articles, our partners may compensate us for displaying the content to you or make a purchase or fill a form. This will not incur any additional charges to you. To make things simpler for you to identity or distinguish advertised or sponsored articles or links, you may consider all articles or links hosted on our site as a commercial article placement. We will not be responsible for any loss you may suffer as a result of any omission or inaccuracy on the website.
2023 01 23T161717Z 2 LYNXMPEJ0M0N6 RTROPTP 4 ECB EURO DIGITAL
2023 01 23T161717Z 2 LYNXMPEJ0M0N6 RTROPTP 4 ECB EURO DIGITAL

Digital euro will be free but limited in scope, ECB says


FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The digital version of the euro currency will be free to use and available to all but the European Central Bank does not want to keep any personal data on its users, ECB board member Fabio Panetta said on Monday.

The ECB is working on a digital version of its currency and is in the process of outlining the broader design, also hoping to alleviate concerns that the digital currency could disrupt the financial system and give the central bank too much data on citizens.

A digital currency is a direct claim on the central bank’s balance sheet, much like cash, so it is deemed safer than a deposit kept at a commercial bank.

“The digital euro would be a public good,” Panetta told the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs.

“It would therefore make sense for its basic services to be free of charge – for example when using the digital euro to pay another person, as is the case for cash.”

Banks have been concerned that a digital currency would make their own services redundant, so customers would abandon them and move their cash to central bank money given the added safety.

However, Panetta said the ECB would offer no accounts to citizens and would not let people make programmed, regular payments to cover transactions like bills or rent, as it is not in the business of creating competition for commercial banks.

“We believe supervised intermediaries, who are in direct contact with users, are best placed to identify use cases for conditional payments and any other advanced payment services,” Panetta said.

If issued, the ECB could develop its own standalone app for payments or may allow commercial banks to integrate the digital euro into their own platforms.

Don't miss out on any breaking news or insightful opinions!
Subscribe to our free newsletter and stay updated on the go!


By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: Global Banking & Finance Review. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email.

Its own app would, however, include only basic payment functionalities and ensure that it could be used anywhere in the euro area, a 20-nation currency bloc with around 350 million people.

“The ECB would not set any limitations on where, when or to whom people can pay with a digital euro,” Panetta said.

Hoping to address a key concern about privacy and confidentiality, Panetta said the ECB aims to have no access to personal data.

This may be problematic, however, given concerns about money laundering, terrorism financing, and tax evasion, so legislators are looking at options to keep tabs on usage.

The ECB is still only investigating the creation of a digital euro and actual issuance is still years away.

 

(Reporting by Balazs Koranyi, editing by Ed Osmond)

 

Recent Post: