European Union finance ministers have established a fundamental roadmap for the launch of the digital euro, marking a significant political breakthrough for the project, Reuters reported on Friday.
The agreement, reached in Copenhagen, outlines a framework in which the digital currency would coexist with commercial bank money, providing consumers with a direct, state-backed digital wallet.
A key compromise gives EU ministers oversight of the final decision to issue the currency and proposes limits on individual holdings to prevent potential bank runs.
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Although the European Central Bank (ECB) is driving the project, this ensures that member states retain political control.
ECB President Christine Lagarde highlighted the strategic importance of the agreement, calling it a "political statement concerning the sovereignty of Europe." Despite this breakthrough, the launch is still a long way off.