The European Central Bank selected 36 payment service providers for a 12-month digital euro pilot starting in the second half of 2027. The pilot will run across 19 national central banks in the euro area and represents the project's move into practical testing after years of design work. The ECB received more than 50 applications after opening expressions of interest in March 2026, selecting participants that include banks and non-bank payment companies with varying business models, sizes, and geographic coverage.
ECB Pilot Covers 19 Euro Area Countries and Multiple Payment Types
The pilot will take place at the ECB and 19 national central banks across the euro area, including those in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal, and Finland. The ECB said it received more than 50 applications after opening expressions of interest in March 2026.
Some firms will act as distributing payment service providers, giving Eurosystem staff access to beta digital euro services such as account setup and payments. Others will act as acquiring providers, enabling selected merchants to receive beta digital euro payments. Some participants will do both.
The pilot will include person-to-person payments, both online and offline. It will also test consumer-to-business payments at physical points of sale, including software-based point-of-sale systems, as well as e-commerce and mobile payments.
Beta Digital Euro Will Test Real Payment Flows Without Legal Tender Status
The trial will use a beta version of the digital euro. It will be close to the design currently envisioned in draft legislation, but it will not have legal tender status.
Piero Cipollone, the ECB executive board member leading the digital euro task force, said the level of market interest shows "the private sector's readiness to engage actively with the digital euro project to strengthen the European payments landscape."
Stripe Joins Pilot as Privacy Concerns Persist
Stripe is among the companies selected for the pilot. Eileen O'Mara, Stripe's vice chair, said Europe has a rare chance to shape its digital payments future. She tweeted: "Success will depend on building a digital euro that works for the real economy: one that is easy to integrate and provides the security, reliability, and performance businesses expect from today's payment infrastructure."
The announcement also drew fresh criticism from digital asset advocates and central bank digital currency skeptics. Handre Van Heerden argued on X that the digital euro would give the ECB too much control over money, raising concerns about traceability, restrictions on spending and possible policy tools such as negative rates or expiry rules.
Those concerns have followed the project for years. Privacy has been one of the most sensitive issues in public debate, while the ECB has framed the digital euro as a way to preserve monetary sovereignty as stablecoins, private payment networks and crypto assets expand.
FAQ
When will the ECB digital euro pilot begin and how long will it last?
The pilot is expected to begin in the second half of 2027 and run for 12 months.
How many payment service providers did the ECB select for the digital euro pilot?
The ECB selected 36 payment service providers from more than 50 applications received after opening expressions of interest in March 2026.
What types of payments will the digital euro pilot test?
The pilot will test person-to-person payments both online and offline, consumer-to-business payments at physical points of sale including software-based point-of-sale systems, as well as e-commerce and mobile payments.
