Europe's Big Banks Bet on Euro Stablecoin for Ethereum

A group of 37 European banks has formed a consortium called Qivalis to create a euro-denominated stablecoin on the Ethereum network. The project, which is being developed within the framework of the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) ecosystem, aims to create a regulated digital asset market in Europe.

The euro stablecoin will be pegged 1:1 to the fiat currency and will be launched in the second half of 2026 after receiving an e-money institution license from the Dutch central bank. Qivalis has chosen to develop its stablecoin on public Ethereum, rather than private or permissioned blockchain technology.

This move could bring a significant piece of European bank-issued digital money into the same blockchain ecosystem where stablecoins and DeFi already have deep liquidity. The $300 billion stablecoin market is currently dominated by dollar-based stablecoins, with euro-denominated stablecoins making up less than 0.5% of the total.