ECB Signs Agreement to Utilize Existing Payment Standards for Digital Euro

The European Central Bank (ECB) has entered into agreements with the European Card Payment Cooperation, Nexo Standards, and Berlin Group to repurpose existing open payment standards for digital euro transactions. According to ChainCatcher, this initiative aims to reduce system access costs for banks, merchants, and payment service providers. The standards include contactless payments, merchant and payment service provider connectivity, and alias-based payments such as those using phone numbers. The ECB believes this move will lower market adoption costs and foster a unified digital euro experience across the eurozone. Previously, the ECB estimated that the digital euro could impose costs of approximately 4 billion to 6 billion euros on EU banks within four years.