German Banking Industry Committee is in favour of e-euros, position paper shows

The German Banking Industry Committee (GBIC) has released a position paper speaking out in favour of the E-Euro.

In the position paper, the GBIC shared the disadvantages that could result from a failure to introduce the E-Euro and explained that an ecosystem including three key features must be constructed. On the one hand, a ‘retail CBDC’ in private use must fulfil a function similar to that of cash. The association also calls for an ‘offline function’ to enable anonymous payments, which should be made possible via its own wallets. Furthermore, the e-euro must also be applicable as a ‘wholesale CBDC’ that can be used for the capital markets and internal banking transactions.

According to a GBIC representative, the digitisation process of central bank accounts should also be included in the European Central Bank’s (ECB) project. The position paper lists the bank-issued ‘deposit token’ as the third feature, which should support the two aforementioned types of e-euro. The focus here is primarily on corporate customers in the Industry 4.0 environment. A smart contract function is intended to automate contracts and make the industry more efficient. The GBIC also advocates an upper limit up to which EU citizens can use the e-euro, however it does not give a fixed amount.