Digital Euro Clears Key Hurdle Despite Conservative Opposition
Patriots for Europe voted against the proposal and warned that Brussels could end up building a financial infrastructure capable of monitoring digital payments.
The European Central Bank website page about the digital euro displayed on a smartphone, in Brussels on February 10, 2026.
NICOLAS TUCAT / AFP
Patriots for Europe voted against the proposal and warned that Brussels could end up building a financial infrastructure capable of monitoring digital payments.
The digital euro has just overcome one of the main political obstacles on its long legislative journey.
The European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) approved on Tuesday the report establishing Parliament’s position on the future digital currency to be issued by the European Central Bank (ECB). The text passed with 43 votes in favour, 14 against and one abstention, securing a broad majority made up of the EPP, Socialists, Liberals, and Greens.
Supporters of the project present it as a tool to strengthen Europe’s strategic autonomy in payments and reduce dependence on American giants such as Visa and Mastercard. The digital euro would function as an electronic version of cash, backed directly by the ECB and accessible through digital wallets managed by banks and payment service providers.
It is important to note that the ECON vote does not mean the immediate creation of the digital euro. What has been approved is Parliament’s negotiating position for the next stage of the legislative process.
The text supports the ECB’s preferred model, which includes both an online and an offline version of the digital euro. According to promises made by ECB President Christine Lagarde, the system will coexist with cash rather than replace it.
The digital euro would be issued directly by the European Central Bank, something unprecedented for hundreds of millions of European citizens. Although payments would continue to be processed through private financial institutions, the underlying infrastructure would ultimately depend on the ECB itself.
The chair of the parliamentary committee, French Socialist MEP Aurore Lalucq, described the vote as “a historic day for Europe.”
First step: done.
Europe is restoring its sovereignty in payment methods from the oligopoly of US giants like Visa and Mastercard by adopting the digital euro.
The file now moves to the European Parliament’s plenary session, scheduled for July 6–9 in Strasbourg.
If Parliament formally endorses the position, trilogue negotiations between the Parliament, the Council and the European Commission will begin in order to agree on the final text. Brussels hopes to agree by the end of 2026.
The ECB will then continue the technical development of the project. According to the current timetable outlined by European institutions, a pilot programme could begin during the second half of 2027. If the tests prove successful and the legislation is finally adopted, the full issuance of the digital euro could take place around 2029.
Patriots push back against
The strongest opposition came from the Patriots for Europe group.
The group issued a statement, declaring the digital euro is a tool that “costs more. That protects your money less. That hands more power to central EU institutions while waiving the identity checks every European citizen has to pass, but asylum seekers don’t.”
🚨 | A digital euro that costs more. That protects your money less. That hands more power to central EU institutions while waiving the identity checks every European citizen has to pass, but asylum seekers don’t.
MEP Jorge Buxadé (VOX / PfE) accused the European People’s Party of abandoning the safeguards initially proposed by the rapporteur himself during the early stages of the file.
“No one has ever voted for a digital euro at the ballot box, and the Spanish PP has promoted and approved it without conditions after surrendering to Brussels, the ECB and the CDU,” Buxadé said following the vote.
🔎📱 El PP ha impulsado en Bruselas junto a la izquierda la nueva herramienta totalitaria de Von der Leyen.
🔵🔴 Los de Feijoo y los de Sánchez juntos para controlar a los europeos.
‼️ Desde VOX lo tenemos claro. Hemos votado NO al euro digital y nos opondremos siempre. pic.twitter.com/oPoypUjPdX
For the Patriots, the core issue is who controls the financial infrastructure through which Europeans’ payments will circulate within a European Union that has steadily expanded its regulatory reach into increasingly sensitive areas over recent years. The group echoes the concerns of various stakeholders that centralised tracking of payments could erode financial privacy.
The debate, therefore, is no longer merely about a new method of payment (and whether it is indeed necessary.) The real battle will be deciding whether the digital euro remains a limited monetary tool or becomes the foundation of a much broader financial architecture operating under the supervision of European institutions.
That debate has only just begun.
Javier Villamor is a Spanish journalist and analyst. Based in Brussels, he covers NATO and EU affairs at europeanconservative.com. Javier has over 17 years of experience in international politics, defense, and security. He also works as a consultant providing strategic insights into global affairs and geopolitical dynamics.
