ECB Says Digital Euro Will Deliver Maximum Privacy as Surveillance Concerns Grow

European central bank officials argue that the Eurosystem will be technically unable to connect individual users with their digital euro purchases, although privacy advocates remain unconvinced.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is seeking to address growing concerns about surveillance surrounding its planned digital euro. A senior ECB official said the proposed currency would provide stronger privacy protections than conventional bank transfers rather than reducing financial privacy.

ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said in a recent interview that the Eurosystem would be structurally unable to identify specific individuals through their digital euro transactions, whether payments are made online or offline.

Cipollone argued that traditional bank transfers currently expose transaction information to the parties involved, while the digital euro is designed to provide a higher degree of privacy. He described the system as offering the highest level of privacy that current technology can provide.

The comments come as criticism of the digital euro has intensified. Central bank digital currencies frequently face resistance from the public over concerns that governments could use them to monitor spending or potentially restrict how people use their money.

Privacy Promises Face Scrutiny

Austrian digital rights organization Epicenter.works and other civil society groups recently questioned the strength of the digital euro’s proposed privacy protections.

In a joint statement earlier this month, the groups argued that the privacy framework depends too heavily on assurances from institutions rather than safeguards built directly into the technology. They warned that promises made through legislation could later be weakened during implementation, reinterpreted by courts or fail to be properly enforced.

Cipollone offered additional details about the ECB’s privacy approach. He said offline digital euro payments would occur directly between the payer and recipient, with transaction information accessible only to those two parties, making the experience comparable to using cash.

For online payments, banks would be able to identify customers, but Cipollone said this access would be limited to requirements related to anti-money-laundering compliance.

The ECB official also rejected concerns that introducing the digital euro would eventually eliminate physical cash. He pointed to the ECB’s recent public consultation on the design of new euro banknotes as evidence that the institution intends to maintain cash as part of the monetary system.

Cipollone argued that planning new banknotes would make little sense if the ECB intended to phase out physical currency.

His comments follow the European Parliament’s approval of digital euro legislation last month. The digital currency is currently scheduled for a potential rollout in 2029.

ECB President Christine Lagarde has also sought to reassure the public that the digital euro would not replace cash, saying the two forms of money are expected to coexist.