Europe's Dual Push for Digital Money: ECB Touts Privacy, Revolut Launches Euro Stablecoin

The European Central Bank (ECB) is moving forward with its digital euro project, emphasizing that it will offer the highest level of privacy available in current technology. The bank's executive board member Piero Cipollone stated that offline payments using the digital euro would be visible only to the payer and recipient, with no data reaching the ECB system or network.

Cipollone emphasized that online transactions would also prevent the ECB from identifying individuals involved, although participating banks would retain access to information needed for Anti-Money Laundering compliance. The ECB's design is intended to prevent direct connections between digital euro transactions and specific people.

Meanwhile, Revolut has launched EURR, a euro-backed stablecoin on Ethereum, to eligible users in Denmark, Poland, and Portugal. This move is part of Europe's push to develop alternatives to dollar-backed stablecoins that dominate the on-chain payment market.