The European Central Bank is edging closer to a full-fledged digital euro pilot, signaling a shift from exploratory talks to concrete testing. In remarks delivered after an executive committee meeting of the Italian Banking Association, ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone outlined a staged timetable that prioritizes the selection of payment service providers (PSPs) in early 2026 and a 12-month pilot during the second half of 2027. The plan envisions a small group of PSPs, merchants and Eurosystem staff participating in the initial phase, with broader involvement contingent on legislative and technical readiness. The remarks underscore the bank’s aim to validate a central bank digital currency in practical settings while preserving the integrity of European card schemes and keeping banks at the core of the payments ecosystem. held

Cipollone stressed that the digital euro would be designed to protect European card schemes and preserve banks’ central role in Europe’s payments system, a framing that aligns with Reuters’ coverage of the central bank’s approach. The pilot is intended to be modest in scope at the outset, focusing on a limited number of PSPs, merchants and Eurosystem staff to test onboarding, settlement and liquidity management in a real-world environment. This phased approach is positioned to give participating PSPs an early-readiness edge should a broader rollout follow, while generating practical data on infrastructure, compliance and staffing costs for planning purposes.

Key takeaways

• PSP selection for the digital euro pilot is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2026, setting the stage for a 12-month trial in the latter half of 2027.
• The pilot will involve a limited cohort of PSPs, merchants and Eurosystem staff, enabling hands-on testing of onboarding, settlement and liquidity management within a controlled environment.
• European authorities emphasize that the digital euro is intended to shield domestic payment ecosystems and card schemes, rather than displace them, with a focus on preserving the role of banks in payments.
• Governance and cost visibility are key aims of the pilot, offering participating players clearer insights into future infrastructure, compliance and staffing needs.
• Industry expectations are shaped by a longer-term roadmap that includes potential broader rollout and a 2029 launch target, contingent on legislative progress in 2026 and subsequent regulatory steps.

Market context: The push for a digital euro sits within a broader European effort to modernize payments, reduce dependence on international card networks, and ensure a stable, centrally governed digital currency option for residents and businesses. The central bank’s framing of the pilot as a way to protect domestic systems while engaging with private sector participants mirrors ongoing debates around stablecoins and private payment solutions that could otherwise erode the traditional banking role in payments.

Why it matters

The ECB’s move toward a structured pilot signals a careful balance between innovation and incumbency. By enabling a controlled test environment that includes EU-licensed PSPs and direct Eurosystem involvement, the central bank aims to gather actionable data on how a digital euro could function in real commerce. This includes practical issues around onboarding new users, ensuring seamless settlement between participants, and managing liquidity—areas that have historically proven complex for central bank digital currency platforms to operationalize at scale.

From a banking perspective, the digital euro is envisioned not as a threat to banks, but as a mechanism to preserve their centrality in a payments landscape that increasingly incorporates digital solutions. Cipollone highlighted that the project would aim to protect domestic payment rails and card schemes while offering a more cost-efficient option for merchants. The stated goal is to place a cap on merchant fees for the digital euro network that would be lower than the charges typical of international card networks, yet higher than those charged by domestic schemes. This pricing dynamic is designed to keep EU-based payment ecosystems competitive while ensuring that the digital euro remains attractive to merchants and consumers alike.

European policymakers are also mindful of broader industry shifts. The plan explicitly notes the European Bancomat and Bizum-type networks as areas where the digital euro could help preserve domestic alternatives against private, cross-border payment rails. In this context, the pilot is less about displacing existing networks and more about integrating a central bank digital currency in a way that complements, rather than competes with, established infrastructures. This approach aligns with the broader aim of safeguarding financial stability and ensuring that Europe maintains strategic control over its payments architecture as new digital forms of money emerge.

What to watch next

• First-quarter 2026: Official PSP selection process begins, narrowing the field for the pilot.
• Second half of 2027: Primary 12-month digital euro pilot period commences with participating PSPs and merchants.
• 2026–2027: Legislation and regulatory steps to enable or adjust digital euro deployment, shaping the timeline for broader rollout.
• 2029: Potential full-scale launch if legislative and technical milestones are met and stakeholders achieve sufficient readiness.
• Ongoing infrastructure planning: ECB and Eurosystem continue to map future ecosystem costs, staffing needs and compliance requirements tied to the digital euro’s operation.

Sources & verification

• ECB press release and accompanying document outlining the PSP selection and pilot plans (Sp260218) and related materials.
• Reuters coverage detailing Cipollone’s remarks and the digital euro design goals to protect European banks’ card schemes.
• Cointelegraph reporting on the digital euro trajectory, including references to the 2029 launch plan and next-phase progression.
• Historical reporting on the ECB’s progression toward a digital euro, including discussions around legislation timelines in 2026.

ECB advances digital euro pilot as PSP selection begins in 2026

The European Central Bank is advancing toward a tangible digital euro pilot, signaling a transition from theoretical exploration to real-world testing. The plan, presented in the wake of a meeting with the Italian Banking Association’s executive committee, centers on naming payment service providers (PSPs) in early 2026 and launching a 12-month trial in the second half of 2027. The pilot’s initial footprint will be deliberately modest: a limited cadre of PSPs, a handful of merchants and Eurosystem staff will participate to validate core operational flows, including onboarding, settlement and liquidity management. This approach aims to deliver measurable insights while preserving the primacy of existing European card schemes and banks within the payments system.

In explaining the design philosophy, Cipollone stressed that the digital euro should bolster domestic payment networks rather than replace them. By anchoring the rollout in EU-licensed PSPs, the ECB seeks to ensure merchant access, interoperable settlements and a governance structure that keeps banks at the center of the payments ecosystem. The broader objective is to strike a balance between innovation and stability—allowing the digital euro to co-exist with established rails while mitigating the risk of private, non-government-controlled systems displacing traditional players.

A key element of the planned approach is the potential to test and refine future infrastructure, compliance and staffing costs. The pilot’s visibility into these cost dimensions could inform investment decisions for PSPs and banks, helping them plan capital deployment with greater certainty. Direct Eurosystem involvement is intended to yield practical feedback from participants, shaping both product design and governance arrangements as the project evolves.

Beyond the technical and financial considerations, the ECB’s digital euro initiative is framed as a strategic safeguard for Europe’s payments sovereignty. The project explicitly envisions protecting local networks, such as Italy’s Bancomat and Spain’s Bizum, from losing ground to private, cross-border platforms. In Cipollone’s view, the digital euro should offer an affordable alternative for merchants—pricing that is lower than the typical charges on international networks but higher than the minimums charged by domestic schemes. This pricing nuance reflects a deliberate effort to maintain domestic competitive advantages while embracing the efficiencies associated with central bank money in digital form.

As policymakers weigh the next steps, observers will be watching how the proposed timeline aligns with legislative developments in 2026 and how the pilot’s findings influence the path toward a broader rollout. The ECB’s timeline currently contemplates a 2029 launch under favorable regulatory and technical conditions, with a potential early start to the pilot if legislation is enacted in 2026. This braided timetable underscores the delicate balance the central bank must strike between experimentation, market readiness and fiscal prudence in a rapidly evolving digital payments landscape.

TLDR

• Canary Capital launched the Canary Stake SUI ETF on Nasdaq, offering exposure to the SUI token and staking rewards.
• Grayscale converted its SUI trust into an ETF, providing investors with direct access to the SUI token through NYSE Arca.
• The new SUI ETFs allow both institutional and retail investors to participate in the growing SUI blockchain ecosystem.
• SUI is a Layer 1 blockchain developed by Mysten Labs, with its token used for transaction fees and smart contract execution.
• The SUI ETFs enable investors to earn rewards through SUI’s proof-of-stake mechanism while tracking the spot price of the token.

Two new exchange-traded funds (ETFs) linked to SUI token launched on Wednesday, offering investors direct exposure to SUI’s price. Canary Capital debuted the Canary Stake SUI ETF on Nasdaq, while Grayscale converted its SUI trust into an ETF on NYSE Arca. Both funds will track SUI’s price, with the added benefit of enabling investors to earn staking rewards.

Canary Capital’s SUI ETF: Canary Stake SUI ETF (SUIS)

Canary Capital launched its Canary Stake SUI ETF, trading under the ticker symbol SUIS on Nasdaq. This new fund tracks the spot price of SUI and allows investors to benefit from staking rewards. SUI operates on a proof-of-stake mechanism, which the ETF integrates into its structure, allowing investors to earn net staking rewards.

Steven McClurg, CEO of Canary Capital, emphasized the importance of this fund, saying, “The Canary Staked SUI spot ETF (SUIS) brings exposure to SUI in a registered, exchange-traded structure, while also enabling investors to benefit from net staking rewards generated through SUI’s proof-of-stake mechanism.” The ETF provides a regulated way for investors to engage with the SUI ecosystem and benefit from staking.

Grayscale Launches SUI Fund as an ETF

Grayscale followed suit, launching its own SUI fund on the same day. The company converted its SUI trust into an ETF, trading under the ticker GSUI on NYSE Arca. This ETF will provide investors with exposure to the SUI token, offering another way to participate in the growing blockchain ecosystem.

Grayscale’s decision to turn its SUI trust into an ETF aims to provide easier access for institutional and retail investors. By offering direct exposure to the SUI token, the fund offers an alternative to buying the token directly on cryptocurrency exchanges.

SUI’s Growing Ecosystem

SUI, developed by Mysten Labs, is a Layer 1 blockchain used to power decentralized applications and smart contracts. The SUI token plays a vital role in the blockchain, serving as a means to pay for transaction fees and support various other network functions. SUI is currently ranked 31st by market capitalization, valued at approximately $3.7 billion.

The launch of these SUI ETFs marks an important milestone for the blockchain’s adoption. It allows a broader range of investors to gain exposure to the SUI ecosystem in a regulated, traditional investment format. The ETFs make it easier for individuals to invest in the blockchain’s native token while also earning rewards through its proof-of-stake mechanism.

The European Union, often criticized for prioritizing rulemaking over innovation, is pointing to the European Blockchain Sandbox as an example of how regulation can boost innovation.

After three cohorts of confidential dialogues, the initiative has produced a 230-page best practices report and drawn in nearly 125 regulators and authorities.

The European Commission tapped law firm Bird & Bird and its consortium partners to lead the initiative, which matches blockchain use cases with regulators for confidential dialogues aimed at clearing legal challenges.

Marjolein Geus, a partner at Bird & Bird, told Cointelegraph that the process has shown compliance need not be a deterrent.

“For use case owners, it helps them better understand the relevant regulations and how those rules apply to their projects,” she said. “It allows regulators and authorities to deepen their understanding of how those technologies interact with the regulatory frameworks within their areas of competence.”

In the latest cohort, “mature” use cases were increasingly operational and embedded in sectors such as energy, healthcare and artificial intelligence, bringing along more complex compliance discussions.

How MiCA became a test of regulatory timing for blockchain

When the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) was adopted, observers warned that strict obligations would raise barriers for startups. Stablecoin rules drew particular scrutiny as Tether — issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin — ultimately decided against seeking MiCA authorization for USDt (USDT).

The brain drain narrative predates crypto. European founders have often incorporated in jurisdictions perceived as having a lighter touch.

Similar fears surfaced when the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) took effect in 2018. Businesses complained of interpretive confusion and administrative burden. Some foreign firms scaled back EU exposure. However, the GDPR has since become a global reference point, with many multinationals aligning operations to its standards.

The criticism that Europe “regulates first and innovates later” rests on the idea that legal certainty follows market development. MiCA was adopted before the crypto sector reached institutional maturity. In theory, that sequencing risks locking rapidly developing tech into rigid categories too early.

But the sandbox advanced a counterpoint, suggesting that early legislation combined with regulatory dialogue can enhance clarity and accelerate compliance. In the third cohort, 77% of respondents described the sandbox as having a crucial or valuable impact on innovation and regulation, and none reported no impact.

While the EU opted for early codification and dialogue, the world’s largest economy, the US, lacks a comprehensive federal framework for digital assets despite presidential pledges to become a global hub. Its proposed Digital Asset Market Clarity Act has stalled after key industry figures withdrew support over provisions, including restrictions on stablecoin yield.

Related: When will crypto’s CLARITY Act framework pass in the US Senate?

Smart contracts and the limits of decentralization

While the best practices report spans over 20 chapters across multiple regulatory domains, its sections on smart contracts and decentralization focus on how blockchain systems are structured at the code and governance level.

“Virtually all blockchain DLT use cases use smart contracts. They are subject to regulation, with security requirements often relevant, as well as obligations under the GDPR,” Geus said.

The dialogues examined how those contracts interact with existing EU frameworks, not just MiCA. Depending on their function and the degree of control retained by identifiable actors, smart contracts may trigger obligations ranging from cybersecurity source code reviews to operational resilience testing and conformity declarations.

“The question then becomes how to ensure those smart contracts are secure and GDPR compliant and how to test whether they meet the applicable regulatory frameworks. That is an area where further clarification, harmonization and standardization are needed,” Geus said.

Another focal point of the third cohort report is the qualification of services provided “in a fully decentralized manner without any intermediary” under MiCA.

MiCA references the term “fully decentralized” but doesn’t define it.

Like smart contracts, determining full decentralization in Europe requires further clarification. The report did attempt to lay out a checklist within the limits of how MiCA and the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive are structured.

Among those are identifiable fee recipients or entities capable of modifying the protocol, which may suggest the existence of an intermediary. Where such influence exists, MiCA is likely to apply, and authorization as a crypto service provider may be required.

Related: Crypto’s decentralization promise breaks at interoperability

Crypto in Europe’s legal architecture

The European Blockchain Regulatory Sandbox’s participation neither implies legal endorsement or regulatory approval nor does it grant derogations from applicable law.

By the third cohort, dialogues increasingly engaged horizontal legislation such as the GDPR and the Data Act. Projects were assessed not as isolated crypto experiments, but as embedded digital systems interacting with financial, cybersecurity and data governance frameworks.

Johannes Wirtz, partner at Bird & Bird’s finance regulation group, observed that regulators involved in the dialogues demonstrated deeper familiarity with crypto than expected.

“This was actually something which surprised me in certain regards because you always had this assumption that they are more or less bound to the old world, but they have their innovation departments, which are really good at identifying the issues,” Wirtz said.

If the early criticism of European policy assumed that law would constrain experimentation, Bird & Bird representatives claimed that structured dialogue clarifies how that perimeter applies in practice.

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