The European Central Bank published a reply from President Christine Lagarde to a Member of the European Parliament explaining how climate and nature considerations are being integrated into the digital euro project, with sustainability principles such as energy efficiency treated as core design requirements. The ECB highlighted that it intends to rely on existing payments infrastructure where possible to avoid duplicating systems and has incorporated environmental criteria into the selection of service providers, including expectations that providers and data centres be located in the European Economic Area, use energy-efficient technologies and follow best practices in environmental performance. It is also working to assess the digital euro’s potential environmental footprint using a life cycle assessment approach comparable to its 2023 study on the environmental footprint of euro banknotes, covering emissions from system build and maintenance through to day-to-day use; while the project remains in a preparation phase and does not yet have specific emissions figures, the ECB has started by collecting publicly available greenhouse gas emissions data from existing digital payment systems to establish a baseline and inform potential energy-efficiency and sustainability benchmarks. Lagarde and Executive Board member Piero Cipollone committed to keep the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs updated through regular appearances and ongoing website publications, and the ECB reiterated its readiness to provide technical support during discussions on the legislative framework for the digital euro.
European Central Bank 2025-10-17
European Central Bank sets out energy-efficiency design and life-cycle footprint assessment for the digital euro
The European Central Bank (ECB) is integrating climate and nature considerations into the digital euro project, emphasizing sustainability principles like energy efficiency. The ECB plans to use existing payments infrastructure to avoid duplication and has set environmental criteria for service providers. While the project is still in preparation, the ECB is assessing its environmental footprint and has committed to keeping the European Parliament informed through regular updates.