European Central Bank Executive Board member Piero Cipollone said he is not concerned about a possible postponement of a European Parliament vote on the digital euro from early May to late June.
Speaking at a virtual discussion with the Peterson Institute for International Economics on Wednesday, Cipollone referenced reports that lawmakers will likely vote on June 23 rather than the previously scheduled May 5 date. He framed the shift as modest relative to the multiyear effort to develop the central bank digital currency.
"We have been patient for three years, it doesn’t cost much to wait a couple more months," Cipollone said. "As long as we have a final legislation by the end of this year, we will be able to respect our timeline."
The European Parliament’s economic and monetary affairs committee is contending with divergent views over the digital euro. A central fault line is whether the currency should be launched in both online and offline forms or only an offline option should proceed, even though the plenary voted in February to back both formats.
Member states reached a common position on the digital euro in December. The ECB has said that a launch could occur in 2029, contingent on legislation being finalized this year. The bank also plans to begin a 12-month pilot phase in the second half of 2027.
Separately, ECB policymakers have raised concerns about Europe’s reliance on U.S.-based payment firms such as Visa (NYSE:V) and Mastercard (NYSE:MA). They have also noted exposure to dollar-pegged stablecoins supported by President Donald Trump as a related issue for payments and monetary sovereignty.
The comments underline the ECB’s emphasis on legislative clarity as a prerequisite for its operational timeline, and the remaining political and technical questions that could influence the implementation path for a digital euro.