Euroclear Urges Immediate Action to Maintain Europe's Digital Finance Leadership

According to ChainCatcher, Euroclear has issued a warning at the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee hearing, emphasizing the urgent need for Europe to act swiftly to maintain its leadership in digital finance. Euroclear, which manages assets worth €41 trillion, asserts that digital assets are no longer theoretical but are actively reshaping corporate financing, trading, and investment practices. Since launching the D-FMI platform in 2023, Euroclear has facilitated the issuance of digital bonds on blockchain for institutions like the World Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. The latest initiative, PYTHAGORE, in collaboration with the French central bank, aims to transform Europe's €350 billion NEU CP short-term bond market—the largest short-term financing market in Europe—using central bank digital currency (CBDC). The report highlights the need for Europe to establish four key pillars: a 24/7 sovereign euro settlement system, revision of the DLT pilot mechanism, permission for digital securities to be used as collateral by the European Central Bank, and a unified cross-border legal framework. As global competition intensifies, collaboration between public and private sectors will be crucial in determining whether Europe can maintain its advantage in digital finance.