ECB Sets 2027 Timeline for Digital Euro Pilot with Provider Selection Imminent

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The European Central Bank is advancing its plans for a central bank digital currency, targeting a pilot launch in the second half of 2027. Executive Board Member Piero Cipollone revealed that the process to select payment service providers for the test will officially kick off in the first quarter of next year.

Speaking Wednesday at an executive committee meeting of the Italian Banking Association, Cipollone outlined the structure of the upcoming pilot.

He stated that it will involve a limited cohort of payment service providers, merchants, and internal Eurosystem staff. This controlled environment is designed to test the operational backbone of the prospective digital euro.

Cipollone emphasized that the digital currency’s framework is being built to strengthen the existing financial ecosystem. According to a Reuters report, he noted that the design aims to protect European card schemes and ensure that banks remain central to the Eurozone’s payments landscape. This approach seeks to integrate the new currency without disintermediating traditional financial institutions.