However, banks will not have to deduct the costs they typically incur when working with private payment networks from merchant fees, as the ECB will not charge fees for using its own payment infrastructure.

The ECB is currently selecting credit institutions interested in participating in the pilot phase of the project.

Trading companies, in turn, will also receive an economic incentive: the fees for payments in digital euros will be capped, and this ceiling will be lower than the fees currently charged by international payment systems such as Mastercard and Visa, according to Cipollone.

Who is in favor of and against the digital euro

The ECB expects the European Union to pass the legislation necessary for the issuance of the digital euro this year. The regulator views the project as a tool to preserve the role of public money in the digital economy, unify Europe's fragmented payment infrastructure, and limit dependence on non-EU payment service providers to protect the bloc's monetary sovereignty and economic security.

In January 2026, more than 60 European economists and academics sent an open letter to European Parliament members urging them to support the digital euro project. According to the letter, the authors believe that a lack of support for the initiative would lead to a loss of control over the European monetary system and increase the eurozone's dependence on American payment companies. In February, the European Parliament supported the issuance of the digital euro in both online and offline modes.

Supporters of the digital euro warn that without a full-fledged digital euro, Europe's dependence will only increase as private digital currencies supported by American companies grow. According to Cipollone, out of the 21 countries in the Eurozone, 13 are completely dependent on international payment systems.

However, the project faces resistance from the banking sector. As previously reported by the Financial Times, major European banks, including Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, and ING, have advocated a significant reduction in the scope of the digital euro, warning that it could undermine private payment solutions and lead to a withdrawal of deposits. The German banking lobby has described the ECB's initiative as "too complex" and "too expensive." According to the ECB, in the event of a mass exodus of depositors in the event of financial panic, the digital euro could cause an outflow of up to 699 billion euros from commercial banks in the eurozone, which would create liquidity problems for about a dozen credit institutions.