ECB partners with payment company Nexi to develop digital euro

Paolo Bertoluzzo, CEO of Italian payments company Nexi, said his firm is contributing to the development of the European Central Bank’s digital currency.

According to a CNBC publication, the European Central Bank (ECB) is collaborating with payment company Nexi on a project to test and launch the digital euro. At the Money 20/20 Financial Technology Conference, Nexi CEO Paolo Bertoluzzo said:

“We are partnering with the European Central Bank and contributing to the future of the digital euro, as this initiative can positively impact the evolution of digital payments.”

Nexi is one of the largest payment companies in the European Union. In the field of electronic payments, it competes with the Dutch Adyen and the French Worldline. According to Bertoluzzo, the company is helping the ECB make an informed decision regarding the testing and issuance of the government’s cryptocurrency.

“The situation will evolve because new forms of payments will clearly appear,” he said. “We’re talking about a new version of cash. This is how the ECB thinks about the digital euro. ”

Bertoluzzo noted that government cryptocurrencies and stablecoins will play a much larger role in payments than volatile cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ether.

“This is clearly an asset class,” he said. “But their price fluctuates daily against the backdrop of another statement from someone from Silicon Valley, which is exactly the opposite of what you need in payments. You need confidence. Today, these cryptocurrencies practically do not participate in payments. ”

As a reminder, in July, the governing council of the European Central Bank (ECB) launched the digital euro research phase. It will last 24 months, and the digital currency itself can be issued in 4 years. In September, the ECB’s market infrastructure and payments advisor, Jürgen Schaaf, said that research into the possibilities of the digital euro did not guarantee its launch at all.