Reuters: EU agrees to launch digital euro as alternative to Visa and Mastercard

On Friday, September 19, European Union finance ministers will try to agree on a common position on the launch of the digital euro, an electronic currency that could become an alternative to the world's dominant American Visa and Mastercard systems. About writes Reuters.

The discussions have been going on for six years, but the project has gained relevance now because of the EU's desire to reduce its dependence on other countries in strategic areas such as energy, finance, and defense.

"We need to continue to work with our own digital payment system to reduce our dependence on other suppliers," said Spanish Finance Minister Carlos Cuerpo before the meeting in Copenhagen.

Despite broad political support, the European Parliament has not yet passed the necessary legislation.

The European Central Bank (ECB) hopes that all decisions will be made in the first half of next year, after which the development may take another two and a half to three years.

The digital euro should look like an electronic wallet guaranteed by a central bank. This will allow online payments without the participation of Visa, Mastercard, or PayPal.

European Commissioner for Economic Affairs Valdis Dombrovskis emphasized that the creation of a digital currency will help strengthen Europe's strategic autonomy and develop a single payment system for the entire EU.

"We see this as an important project, both in terms of technological development and strategic autonomy of the EU," he said.

Some MEPs and bankers have expressed concerns that the digital euro could take some customers away from commercial banks and create risks, including a massive "outflow" of money from bank accounts.

• In April, the President of the European Central Bank emphasized that the EU should create its own alternative payment systems.