Piero Cipollone: The digital euro - strengthening Europe's payments ecosystem
Speech by Mr Piero Cipollone, Member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank, at the event "The digital euro in Cyprus", Nicosia, 6 February 2026.
The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.
It is a pleasure to be in Cyprus today.
I would like to thank Governor Patsalides and the organisers for inviting me.
Cyprus's Presidency comes at a pivotal moment for Europe. In a global environment defined by rapid change, strategic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, the Presidency's priority, "Autonomy through security and competitiveness", captures Europe's ambition to strengthen its independence by building a strong, innovative and competitive economy.
This is not a call for protectionism. It is a call to invest in Europe's collective capacity to innovate and to compete globally.
The ECB, along with the euro area national central banks, stands ready to play its part in turning the concept of autonomy through security and competitiveness into practical actions and solutions.
We will focus on an area that is intrinsically linked to our institutional mandate: issuing central bank money and promoting the smooth operation of payment systems.
There are two types of central bank money: retail money, which is used by people and businesses to purchase goods and services, and wholesale money, which is used by banks to settle claims between each other.