In opening remarks at a Rome Future Week conference, Bank of Italy Deputy Governor Chiara Scotti said the digital euro project is moving from design to two practical tests: completing a workable European regulatory framework and demonstrating the payment instrument in real-life conditions. The legislative process is targeted for completion in 2026, after which the European Central Bank could decide whether and when to issue the digital euro, with 2029 identified as a possible issuance date. The regulation must balance usability with financial stability, privacy safeguards with controls against illicit finance, and affordable merchant acceptance with adequate remuneration for payment service providers. Basic services would be free for citizens, while merchant fees would be capped. The Bank of Italy is supporting the fee-cap debate with analysis favoring rules that are simple, transparent and verifiable, particularly given the weaker bargaining power of small merchants. The Eurosystem would absorb a substantial share of infrastructure costs and would not charge intermediaries scheme or settlement fees. A 12-month pilot will begin in the second half of 2027 and involve 36 authorized euro-area payment service providers, a limited number of physical stores and e-commerce platforms, technology providers and volunteer Eurosystem central bank employees. It will test real online and offline person-to-person transfers, point-of-sale purchases and online shopping, assessing technology, user experience, merchant acceptance and integration costs. The Eurosystem is also finalizing a dedicated app whose accessibility standards will exceed those required by the European Accessibility Act, while the arrangements for any subsequent gradual market rollout remain to be defined.

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