It’s not just the residents of (primarily) mountainous areas of Cyprus who are complaining that bank ATMs are becoming scarce to the extent that it hinders their service.
The same is happening with citizens in other EU countries, resulting in protests through local or national authorities against the decision-makers.
Speaking to the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee of the European Parliament, Piero Cipollone, a member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB), emphasized the advantages of the digital euro, which together with cash could maintain the freedom of movement and choices of European citizens for the use of a public means of payment.
As he stated in his speech, which was posted on the ECB’s website, “I have received countless letters from mayors of communities – for example, in mountainous areas – who have expressed concerns about ever greater distances to the nearest ATM.”
Cash and the digital euro, he noted, “have the same goal: to ensure that everyone, regardless of their income, can pay in any situation of daily life. This is a fundamental right. And it should be protected in the same way in all parts of the Eurozone.”
This is the right moment, he noted, “to discuss a digital euro. As legislators, you are currently discussing the legislative proposal of the European Commission, while the Eurosystem began the preparation phase of the digital euro last November.”
There is currently no European digital means of payment, Piero Cipollone noted, that is universally accepted throughout the euro area.
“This forces Europeans – consumers, merchants, and banks – to rely on increasingly expensive international card solutions for everyday payment activities. Fees applied by international card schemes almost doubled between 2016 and 2021 in the EU. And even these international card solutions cannot be used everywhere,” he emphasized.
A digital euro, he stated in his speech, “would correct this situation, breaking Europe’s long-standing dependence and enhancing competition. For this purpose, everyone in the euro area should be able to make or receive payments in digital euro, regardless of the intermediary or the country of origin – as is currently the case for cash.”
He pointed out, “there is a growing preference among the public for digital payments. But central bank money is, for now, only available in physical form – cash. So, if we do not offer a digital euro, we risk sidelining central bank money from payments.”
Piero Cipollone added that digital euro banknotes will not compete with deposit accounts.
Secondly, there will be limits on the amount of digital euro that individuals can hold.
Thirdly, users will be able to pay with digital euro online, seamlessly linking their digital euro account with a payment account with their bank.
He concluded his speech by stating that the digital euro is a joint European project, but money is trust, and therefore the digital euro will require broad support.
