The European Central Bank is recruiting online and mobile merchants to test a beta digital euro in realistic commerce settings. The 12-month pilot will check technical, operational and checkout workflows; the test token will not be legal tender.
ECB opened applications for online and mobile merchants to join a 12-month digital euro pilot expected to start in the second half of 2027.
The pilot will test a beta version that resembles the proposed digital euro but will not have legal-tender status.
Tests will cover technical functionality, operational processes, checkout integration and user experience in e-commerce and mobile-commerce environments.
Bank (ECB) has moved the digital euro discussion into an operational phase by inviting online and mobile merchants across the euro area to apply for a 12-month pilot. The exercise is designed to see how a beta version of the digital euro would work in real-world e-commerce and mobile-commerce transactions.
The ECB says the pilot will test several practical elements of digital-euro payments:
The pilot currency will closely resemble the digital euro proposed in legislation, but it will not be legal tender. That means transactions in the pilot will simulate the intended behavior without creating legally enforceable currency units.
The ECB expects the 12-month pilot to begin in the second half of 2027. The current call for merchants is part of the recruitment phase to populate test scenarios with real e-commerce and mobile-commerce merchants and their customers.
Why merchants are being asked to participate
Testing with merchants aims to surface practical integration challenges that lab or theoretical work can miss. Online and mobile merchants can help evaluate:
These merchant tests will give the ECB data on whether the proposed design supports typical retail and digital commerce use cases.
What this means for merchants and consumers
Merchants considering participation should expect technical and operational scrutiny of their payment setups. Consumers in pilot environments will experience simulated digital-euro transactions that are not legally binding but are intended to reflect how the real instrument would operate.
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The European Central Bank (ECB) has opened its digital euro pilot to online and mobile commerce merchants across the euro area. The call follows the earlier selection of payment service providers for the exercise. Selected merchants will test a beta digital euro. This version closely resembles the digital euro proposed
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