Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said only banks involved in digital euro transactions would identify users, not the Eurosystem. Critics remain skeptical. The US has banned CBDC and the EU advances legislation.
The European Central Bank stepped up its defense of the digital euro's privacy architecture Monday. Executive Board member Piero Cipollone, in an interview, said the Eurosystem would not be able to identify individual users from digital euro payments.
Cipollone said only the banks involved in each transaction would have access to user identities, for anti-money laundering checks. Offline transactions would reveal details only to the payer and the payee, he added.
The pushback comes as lawmakers and privacy advocates voice rising concern about government-issued CBDCs. In the United States, President Donald Trump prohibited federal agencies from developing or promoting a CBDC in early 2025. House lawmakers advanced the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act, which would block the Federal Reserve from issuing one.
In Europe, the legislative process has moved forward. The European Parliament cleared the digital euro proposal for negotiations with the Council, the ECB noted. Cipollone framed the digital euro as a tool to reduce reliance on non-European payment providers. Two-thirds of euro-area card transactions are handled by foreign companies, he said.
Crypto communities remain unconvinced. Critics argue that any CBDC introduces structural vulnerabilities that could expand monitoring capabilities over time. Privacy advocates have called for legislative guarantees that the Eurosystem cannot access transaction data even with user consent.
The ECB says a digital euro could be issued as early as 2029 if legislation and technical milestones are met.
Prepared with AlphaScala editorial tooling from the source reporting linked above. Indexable analysis may include a cited Alpha Score value. Publishing checks screen each story before release. Educational coverage, not personalized advice.