On Wednesday, 11 November 2026, I-Com – Institute for Competitiveness, in collaboration with MEP Pasquale Tridico organised the policy breakfast “Shaping Europe’s Payments Landscape: The Role of the Digital Euro” at the European Parliament in Brussels.
The event brought together representatives of EU institutions, national central banks, Member States and the payments industry to discuss the role of the digital euro in strengthening European monetary sovereignty and fostering a more integrated, competitive and resilient payments ecosystem.
The discussion opened with remarks by MEP Pasquale Tridico (The Left), Shadow Rapporteur on the Digital Euro, followed by a presentation from Stefano da Empoli, President of I-Com, of the Institute’s policy paper “The Digital Euro: A Strategic Response to the New Payments Landscape.” The study examined the fragmentation of Europe’s retail payments market and key challenges surrounding the digital euro, including interoperability, privacy, financial stability and the compensation of payment service providers.
The debate continued with contributions from Piero Cipollone, Member of the ECB’s Executive Board, and Nicola Branzoli (Banca d’Italia), offering central banks’ perspectives on the project. The legislative dimension was then addressed by MEP Fernando Navarrete Rojas (EPP), Rapporteur on the Digital Euro, alongside Shadow Rapporteurs MEP Damian Boeselager (Greens/EFA) and MEP Nikos Papandreou (S&D).
Member States’ perspectives were represented by Guido Borgato (Italy), Fabian Brunner (Germany), José C. García de Quevedo (Spain), and Vincent Rietvink (Netherlands), contributing to the exchange on the regulatory and economic implications of the digital euro.
The event concluded with a tour de table involving representatives of the banking and payments sectors, including Diederik Bruggink (WSBI-ESBG), Costanza Bufalini (UniCredit), Rita Camporeale (Italian Banking Association/EBF), Jean Philippe Joliveau (Nexi Group), Mafalda Moz Teixeira (SIBS MB/ECPA), Emőke Péter (Worldline/EDPIA) and Youcef Tahari (The Payments Association), alongside Alexis Waravka (Independent Retail Europe), representing the retail sector.
Read the I-Com policy paper: The Digital Euro – A Strategic Response to the New Payments Landscape
