Four countries are still against a digital EURO launch as the European Central Bank continues with plans to launch its digital EURO. Many people in Austria, Germany, Netherlands, and Slovakia resist the idea.
The resistance is due to fears that a Central Bank Digital Currency project will leave the region dangerously dependent on technology. Meanwhile, potential users across the region also fear that a CBDC would breach their privacy and threaten their savings.
ECB officials believe that a CBDC is better than physical cash, and are therefore set to vote for the implementation of CBDC toward the end of 2025. According to a correspondence with Bloomberg, ECB officials said the new virtual currency will host advanced privacy and security features. Some of these features, according to the mother financial institution, include encryption and hashing to keep transactions private.
Moreover, the ECB digital Euro proposal plans to make the new digital currency available and readily usable for new arrivals and senior citizens, who could otherwise find using a novel currency form challenging. According to a statement from Christine Lagarde, President of ECB in 2023, the digital euro will coexist with physical fiat. All transactions using the CBDC will be free of charge.
Digital Currencies Emerge Globally as Europe's CBDC Nears Launch Date
Europe isn't the only region where the idea of a digital currency faced severe opposition as citizens asked bewildered, "What is a digital Euro?" across the region. Even the Former US president Trump who once proposed a ban on implementing CBDCs upon reelection has recently changed his stance on vital currencies.
Trump had said that “a digital dollar” is potentially “very dangerous” due to government overreach. He now owns around $1 million in digital wallets.
Meanwhile, political leaders in the United States have expectedly dissenting views about a digital dollar. However, most argue in favor of a CBDC.
Many legislators agree that a CBDC would give the government some additional social score - like China successfully did with its digit Yuan launch.
For a digital coin to gain approval, the US Senate, State House of Representatives, and the President have to assent. Meanwhile, many central banks are researching their CBDC across the world.
Besides China's launch of a digital yuan, the Bank of England is designing its digital pound as experts say the country will finalize decisions within the next few years.
However, some US lawmakers, including Florida's Republican Governor, Ron DeSantis, criticized the idea of a digital dollar, CBDC, and other foreign-issued digital currencies.
Final Insights
Many potential users in four countries - Austria, Germany, Netherlands, and Slovakia are still against a digital EURO idea as the European Central Bank continues with plans to float a digital Euro. Elsewhere, US politicians welcome the digital EURO, which is set for release towards the end of 2025.