ECB picks 36 firms to test digital euro — Stripe and Revolut join the 2027 money-printing beta 🪙

The European Central Bank has selected 36 payment service providers to take part in a digital euro pilot, advancing the central bank digital currency from planning into live testing. The ECB confirmed the lineup in an official announcement published Tuesday, naming fintechs Stripe and Revolut alongside traditional banks Deutsche Bank, UniCredit and BPCE. Revolut recently adjusted some cryptocurrency services for EU users by phasing out support for Tether USDt.

Italy leads the country count with seven selected participants, including UniCredit, Poste Italiane, Nexi Payments, Banca Sella, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, Isybank and Numia. Germany follows with five providers, while Portugal and Greece each have three. The ECB said the mix is designed to create a broad testing environment, with selected providers able to offer pilot services outside their home markets.

The 12-month trial is set to begin in the second half of 2027. The ECB opened a call for interest in March 2026 and received more than 50 applications from payment companies. Selected participants include traditional banks, payment processors and non-bank service providers.

ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone, who chairs the high-level task force on a digital euro, said the response shows private-sector appetite for helping develop the project. "We look forward to deeper engagement as we work with and learn alongside European payment service providers in developing a secure, efficient and inclusive digital euro," Cipollone said.

The pilot will involve the ECB and the central banks of 19 euro-area member states — including Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands — alongside payment companies and merchants testing the system before any potential token issuance. Selected providers will have different responsibilities during the trial, with some focused on supporting user access to beta digital euro services and others helping merchants accept payments, and several companies will take on both roles.