ECB official suggests importance of physical stores accepting digital euro

cointelegraph.com:

Fabio Panetta, executive board member of the European Central Bank, said focus groups exploring the potential rollout of a digital euro hinted the ability to use the digital currency at online and physical stores could be a key feature.

In a written statement released Wednesday, Panetta broke down the findings of ECB focus groups on digital payment methods commissioned in September 2021, which suggested people were more likely to accept a digital euro accepted in physical and online stores and allowed easy person-to-person payments. According to Panetta, all merchants would need to accept a digital euro to see adoption trends like those the fiat euro experienced 20 years ago.

“The introduction of euro banknotes made it possible for us to pay with physical euros anywhere in the euro area,” said Panetta. “So it is no surprise that people expect to be able to use the digital complement to banknotes wherever they can pay digitally or online.”

Findings from the focus groups also hinted that many members of the general public and merchants were unfamiliar with a digital euro and feared cash being phased out as the number of use cases for the technology increased. However, once the concept was explained to them, members of the focus group from the general public said being “widely accepted in all kinds of physical shops and online” was the most desirable feature for a digital euro, while merchants suggested high demand would be their biggest driver.

A digital euro can only be successful if it meets the payment needs of Europeans, says Executive Board member Fabio Panetta. Focus groups have provided us with key input for the project.Mr Panetta’s speech https://t.co/XVYfXtmgpNRead the report https://t.co/enbOpUWFfl1/5