The European Central Bank (ECB) is moving forward with the pilot implementation of the digital euro. On Tuesday, it announced the selection of 36 payment service providers from across the euro area to participate.
From Cyprus, Bank of Cyprus and JCC Payment Systems have been selected. Other participants include major institutions such as Deutsche Bank, UniCredit, Nexi, Worldline, Revolut, Stripe, and Adyen.
The pilot program, which aims to support ongoing preparatory work for the potential issuance of a digital euro, is expected to begin in the second half of 2027 and will run for 12 months.
In detail: the banks that will participate in the programme
Strong market interest
Following a call for expressions of interest in March 2026, the Eurosystem received more than 50 applications from payment service providers, highlighting strong market engagement.
Applicants were assessed based on predefined eligibility criteria. The selected participants include both banks and non-bank providers, representing a wide range of business models, sizes, and geographic coverage. According to the ECB, this ensures a diverse and representative testing environment.
ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone, who chairs the High-Level Task Force on the digital euro, stated that the strong interest reflects the private sector’s readiness to actively engage and accelerate progress on the project, with the aim of strengthening Europe’s payments landscape.
Beta testing phase
The pilot will use a beta version of the digital euro. This version will be technically and functionally close to the proposed final design but will not have legal tender status.
Some providers, acting as distribution service providers, will offer ECB staff access to test services such as opening test accounts and making payments.
Others, acting as acceptance service providers, will enable selected merchants to accept digital euro payments. Some providers will take on both roles.
How the testing will work
The pilot will take place at the ECB and national central banks in multiple countries, including Cyprus, Greece, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, and others.
Selected providers may offer pilot services in countries other than where they are based.
Participants will include ECB and central bank staff, as well as e-commerce merchants and physical businesses such as cafés and restaurants.
Testing will cover:
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Person-to-person payments
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Online payments
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Offline payments
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Payments at physical points of sale
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E-commerce transactions
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Mobile payments
According to the ECB, the pilot will help refine the design of the digital euro and improve user experience.
As a next step, the selected payment service providers will work with their respective national central banks and the ECB on the necessary preparations.
