ECB Selects Two Network Teams to Connect Digital Euro Pilot

Two groups have been chosen to connect payment providers and national central banks with the European Central Bank’s planned digital euro service, advancing pilot infrastructure while leaving any decision to issue the currency open.

The ECB announced Friday, Oct. 30, that one team combines Nexi Payments S.p.A. and Deutsche Telekom Business Solutions GmbH. The other brings together Telefónica de España, S.A.U., Telefónica Global Solutions, S.L.U., and Indra Soluciones Tecnologías de la Información, S.L.U.

Their role is to route messages between the digital euro platform, participating payment providers and national central banks. The first contract took effect Sept. 28, 2026, for initial pilot connectivity. The other agreement is scheduled to begin in May 2027. Participating providers may connect through either group.

The ECB plans a limited, 12-month pilot starting in the second half of 2027. The pilot is expected to involve 36 payment service providers licensed in the euro area, merchants chosen for the exercise, and personnel from the ECB and 19 national central banks. Participants will use a beta version of the digital euro that differs from the version envisioned in legislation. The 36 providers selected for the pilot have already been named.

Both groups are to be ready as of 2029 to provide connectivity for possible issuance. That readiness target depends on a later decision by the ECB Governing Council and does not set a public launch date. Issuance also requires EU co-legislators to adopt the relevant regulation before the council makes its separate decision.

The proposed digital euro would use a centralized settlement platform and would not rely on distributed ledger technology (DLT). The provider contracts add connectivity for institutions using the platform; they do not determine whether the currency will be issued.

The proposed instrument would be digital public money for the euro area, supplementing banknotes and coins. It would be distinct from a cryptocurrency and from a commercial bank deposit. The pilot is a test of a beta system, not the start of public circulation.