ECB issues first digital euro ‘preparation phase’ progress report
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The European Central Bank (ECB) has published the first report on its digital euro preparation phase, including updates on offline functionality, holding limits and the tender process for digital euro component providers. Privacy was also highlighted, following on from a June 13 blog published by the ECB on how to make the digital euro “truly private.” The digital euro “preparation phase” was launched on November 1, 2023 with the aim of laying the foundations for the potential issuance of a digital euro. This week’s report outlined the progress made on key digital euro design aspects, the envisaged next steps for the project and measures taken to assuage concerns around a European Union-wide central bank digital currency (CBDC). Calming privacy fears Privacy is a favored rallying cry of anti-CBDC advocates, particularly in the U.S., where the possibilities provided by applying blockchain’s immutable ledger to a national currency are too often conflated with the eroding of civil liberties and surveillance state. As such, it has been of primary concern to authorities around the globe exploring the technology. The digital euro is no exception. “The privacy and data protection of digital euro users have been fundamental to the project from the beginning, in line with the ‘privacy by design’ approach,” said the ECB. “The public consider privacy and data protection to be two of the most important design elements of a digital euro, which is why the Eurosystem [the monetary authority of the euro area] has prioritised these aspects at every stage of the project.” In terms of updates, the report noted that the design of the digital euro would include an offline functionality that would offer users a “cash-like level of privacy” for payments in physical shops and between individuals. When paying offline, personal transaction details would only be known to the payer and the payee and would not…
Filed under: News - @ July 1, 2024 10:28 am