Digital Euro Rulebook Consultation ECB Releases v0.91 After 4009 Comments

The European Central Bank has not issued new public consultation results on digital euro design on or immediately before 19 October 2026. The most recent detailed summary of stakeholder input appears in the July 2026 sixth Retail Digital Euro Group progress report, which covers the four-month market consultation that closed on 31 October 2025.

Digital Euro Rulebook Consultation Outcomes and Rulebook v0.91

The consultation on interim draft rulebook v0.9 attracted 4009 comments across 12 sections and seven annexes. Between November 2025 and April 2026 the Eurosystem reviewed every submission, incorporated suggestions or supplied clarifications for 68 percent of them, and published updated interim draft rulebook v0.91. Roughly 28 percent of comments addressed topics already scheduled for 2026 workstreams, while about 1 percent were set aside because they conflicted with prior design choices or draft regulation.

Version 0.91 is available on the ECB website. Remaining workstreams focus on certification frameworks, ATM and point-of-sale integration, and offline functionality specifications. These activities run in parallel with legislative trilogue negotiations that began after the Council position in December 2025 and the European Parliament position in July 2026, with completion targeted for the end of 2026.

The digital euro remains designed as a non-remunerated payment instrument subject to individual holding limits and reverse-waterfall mechanisms. It is intended to complement cash rather than replace it, while supporting privacy, offline capability, and competition among payment service providers.

Project Timeline and Preparatory Activities Through 2027

Legislative adoption would allow the ECB Governing Council to decide on issuance after the legal framework is in place, with a possible first issuance targeted for 2029. A 12-month pilot involving 36 selected payment service providers is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2027. A separate merchant call for expressions of interest remains open until 27 October 2026.

Related technical work includes the Appia roadmap public consultation, which received 127 responses with 90 percent containing proposals, and the Pontes distributed-ledger-technology wholesale solution that went live in September 2026. ECB officials have repeatedly stated that technical preparation proceeds alongside the legislative process to ensure readiness for any future issuance decision.

Stakeholders continue to receive updates through regular Retail Digital Euro Group reports. The next formal milestones are the conclusion of trilogue negotiations by December 2026 and the start of pilot testing in 2027, both of which will shape the final rulebook and operational specifications.