ECB opens digital euro innovation programme

• The European Central Bank has invited private firms to develop digital euro applications.
• The programme will explore AI payments, AI agents, micropayments and digital payment features.
• Experimentation will run from January to June 2027, while exploration workshops begin in 2027.

The European Central Bank has invited private firms to develop new digital euro applications.

The programme covers payment features and future technologies for the potential digital euro.

The ECB will explore AI-enabled payments, AI agents and interactions between them.

Other areas include electronic receipts, multi-party payments and conditional payment features.

The experimentation workstream will run from January 2027 through June 2027.

The exploration workstream will examine AI payments, micropayments and future user-facing functionality.

Selected participants will develop solutions, test concepts and submit outcome reports.

Any digital euro launch will depend on the adoption of relevant European Union legislation.