The European Central Bank (ECB), under Christine Lagarde, is pushing for a digital euro at full speed: “The deadline for us will be October 2025, and we are preparing for this date,” Lagarde explained. The implementation depends on the approval of the Commission, the Council, and Parliament must complete the legislative process.
The digital euro is to come in two versions: a retail version for citizens and a wholesale version for financial institutions. What central bankers praise as innovation could turn out to be a Trojan horse for civil liberties. Despite the ECB’s assurances of “high privacy standards,” the fundamental fact remains: a digital central bank currency creates the technical prerequisites for seamless financial transparency.
Unlike cash, every transaction with the digital euro leaves a data trail. The assurance that the ECB will not track transactions is not convincing, given the increasing trends of state surveillance. Technically, it would be possible at any time to lift this self-imposed restriction – for example, in the name of "counterterrorism" or "tax justice."
Every payment tracked in real time, with the ECB able to block payments, deduct taxes,
prevent withdrawals (no bank run), impose expiration dates on money, and enable censorship.
prevent withdrawals (no bank run), impose expiration dates on money, and enable censorship.
The digital euro is to come in two versions: a retail version for citizens and a wholesale version for financial institutions. What central bankers praise as innovation could turn out to be a Trojan horse for civil liberties. Despite the ECB’s assurances of “high privacy standards,” the fundamental fact remains: a digital central bank currency creates the technical prerequisites for seamless financial transparency.
Unlike cash, every transaction with the digital euro leaves a data trail. The assurance that the ECB will not track transactions is not convincing, given the increasing trends of state surveillance. Technically, it would be possible at any time to lift this self-imposed restriction – for example, in the name of "counterterrorism" or "tax justice."
Especially concerning is the possibility of freezing or confiscating balances at the push of a button. What is currently dismissed as a theoretical scenario could become bitter reality tomorrow. The experiences with account freezes of politically unpopular individuals and media in Western democracies show that this danger is by no means unfounded. A digital euro would dramatically increase this concentration of power. Imagine: A government critic suddenly finds their digital balance frozen – without a court order, without legal recourse, and without a cash alternative.
The "programmability" of the digital euro, hailed as an advantage by its supporters, reveals its true threat: The state could determine what you are allowed to spend your money on (for example, linked to a CO2 budget). Spending limits for certain products, time restrictions, or intended purposes could be directly programmed into the currency. This control could also be abused to enforce political goals. Climate policy through limiting meat purchases or air travel? Health policy by limiting "unhealthy" foods? The technical possibilities would be nearly unlimited.
» A digital euro would be a digital form of cash. «
This is a blunt lie and exactly what the digital euro is not.
This is a blunt lie and exactly what the digital euro is not.
While the ECB presents the digital euro as a necessary response to China’s digital yuan and US stablecoins, it conceals the true essence of this race: It is about control, not innovation. China's CBDC project already shows how digital currencies can be used for social control. The ECB's Ethereum blockchain tests may be technically impressive but divert attention from the fundamental shift in power that a digital euro would represent: away from the citizen, towards the state and its institutions.
» The key difference with the CBDC is that central banks will have absolute control on the rules and regulations that will determine the use of that expression of central bank liability. And also we will have the technology to enforce that. Those two issues are extremely important and that makes a huge difference with respect to what cash is. «
Agustín Carstens, General Manager, Bank for International Settlements.
Agustín Carstens, General Manager, Bank for International Settlements.
The digital euro is not a neutral means of payment but a tool for undermining civil liberties. The promised benefits – faster transactions, offline functionality, competitiveness – do not outweigh the risks. While Lagarde and the ECB are pushing forward with technical preparations, citizens and parliamentarians should ask the fundamental question: Do we want a society where every financial transaction can potentially be monitored, controlled, and sanctioned? The answer to this question will have consequences far beyond 2025 or 2028.
See also:
Martin Armstrong (March 3, 2025) - Europe Will Go to War around May 15, Lose, and Euro Will Become Extinct.
TPR (March 2, 2025) - Quantum Computing: Paving the Way for the Tech Oligarchy's Totalitarianism.
TPR (March 2, 2025) - Quantum Computing: Paving the Way for the Tech Oligarchy's Totalitarianism.
了解你的敌人
Know your Enemies.
Know your Enemies.
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