The Eurosystem has selected 36 payment service providers from across the euro area to participate in the digital euro pilot. Among the selected providers is Nova Ljubljanska banka, which will carry out the pilot activities in cooperation with Banka Slovenije. The pilot aims to test the technical functionalities and the digital euro product in a limited scope, beginning in the second half of 2027. It is scheduled to last for 12 months.
The Eurosystem has decided to begin pilot testing of digital euro transactions in the second half of 2027. This is vital for testing the technical functionalities, operational processes and user experience of the beta digital euro. The chosen payment service providers, selected merchants and employees at the central banks of the Eurosystem will participate in the pilot.
A call for expression of interest was issued to all payment service providers in the euro area in March of this year. More than 50 payment service providers responded, of which 36 were selected to participate in the pilot. They cover a wide range of business models and sizes and offer broad geographical coverage across the whole of the European Union. The selection of the payment service providers was based on predefined criteria. Participating payment service providers will be able to take part in one of two roles: (a) distributing payment service providers, which will provide employees of the Eurosystem central banks with access to beta digital euro services, such as setting up their beta digital euro account and making payments; and (b) acquiring payment service providers, which will serve selected merchants and enable them to receive beta digital euro payments. Some providers will perform both roles, acting as both distributing and acquiring payment service providers.
The selected provider in Slovenia is Nova Ljubljanska banka, who will participate in the pilot in both roles in collaboration with Banka Slovenije. Employees at Banka Slovenije will test the beta digital euro in everyday situations such as P2P payments, and services inside the central bank such as instalment purchases.
Nineteen of the euro area central banks will participate in the pilot project.
For more about the selection of the payment service providers, see the ECB website.