European Central Bank (ECB) executive committee member Fabio Panetta said the central bank would be ready to issue a fully functioning government digital currency in four years.
Italian economist Fabio Panetta speaking at the National College of Ireland (NCI) informedthat preparations for the launch of the state digital currency will be fully completed by 2023. Subject to the deadlines, the EU states will have three years to test the digital currency of the Central Bank before launching it into the financial system.
Panetta said the digital euro could boost the European economy if it was used as legal tender by all EU members. The ECB and other institutions will support the implementation of the digital euro through a variety of tactics, including a strong publicity campaign. In addition, the ECB will ensure that cash is accessible to all users, despite the fact that today only 20% of cash is used for payments.
“We will make sure that cash remains available. But if the current trend continues, we could face a future in which cash loses its central role and ability to provide an effective anchor as consumers shift to digital means of payment,” the economist said.
Panetta noted that the digital euro could help maintain confidence in fiat money, “ensure the role of a monetary anchor in the digital age” and the role it has lost due to misguided monetary policies in different countries.
“Digital money issued by the Central Bank will enable everyone to use public money for digital payments. It would be a secure means of payment designed in the public interest. And it will preserve the coexistence of sovereign and private money, which has served us well so far,” he said.
Panetta noted that stablecoins are vulnerable and cannot be guaranteed to be redeemed at any given time. In his statement, he referred to the situation with the UST stablecoin, which, despite its high market capitalization, has lost its peg to the US dollar. Recall that in 2020, Panetta said that the digital euro will be used only in case of force majeure.
Source: Bits
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