The European Union is moving closer to launching a digital euro, a virtual currency intended to reduce the bloc's reliance on U.S. payment systems.

• The European Central Bank (ECB) first proposed the digital euro in 2020 and aims for availability by 2029.
• This initiative seeks to counter the dominance of U.S. firms like Visa and Mastercard, which handle nearly two-thirds of card payments in the euro area.
• While the ECB emphasizes privacy and user choice, some banks express concerns about adaptation costs, estimated between €4 billion and €5.8 billion.