National Bank of Moldova publishes interview with Banque de France Governor on SEPA integration, digital euro expected in about three years and AI black box limits

The National Bank of Moldova published a Romanian translation of an interview with Banque de France Governor François Villeroy de Galhau, recorded on the sidelines of the “New Technology for Old Markets” conference in Chișinău. The discussion focused on how SEPA participation and new technologies can support Moldova’s payments and banking development, alongside the policy rationale and expected trajectory for the digital euro and supervisory expectations for artificial intelligence use in banking. Villeroy de Galhau framed SEPA and technology as an opportunity for Moldova to “leapfrog” stages in modernising payments and addressing inherited vulnerabilities in its banking and payments system. On the digital euro, he described it as a way for central banks to continue providing risk-free, free, universally accessible central bank money in a form suited to a predominantly digital economy, noting that legislative authorisation is needed from the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament and that a digital euro could be proposed to European citizens in about three years. He also argued there is no inherent reason for a digital euro to circulate only within the euro area, and that its use beyond the euro area would depend on citizens’ choices. On AI, he highlighted productivity benefits but warned supervisors cannot accept “black box” use cases where banks do not understand or control the content and outcomes of AI models, and pointed to the need for substantial training within central banks and supervisory institutions.