European Union Law and Governance in Times of Technological and Political Turmoil

Abstract

Over the last 25 years, the EU and its environment have undergone many changes. The digital transition is perhaps the cross-cutting objective that introduces the most changes in the EU's achievements, affecting all (or most) of them. On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the entry into force of the euro, we propose some reflections on the possibility and necessity of creating a digital euro. For more than 15 years bitcoins have existed in the global market, and not only sovereign states such as China, but also large platforms such as Facebook have created their own tokens. The European Commission is activating the necessary regulatory framework so that the single market can be digital without altering its essence. But with respect to the single currency, the issuance of a Digital Euro, under the supervision of the European Central Bank, must be surrounded by safeguards that allow it to act also in the digital market while complying with the basic principles of the European integration process. If we take too long to have it in place or the result is a regulation that is too much of a guarantor, we run the risk that the players, also in the European market, will opt for the use of other digital currencies that are more agile but also opaquer. Since the end of 2023, the European Central Bank has been dealing with these issues, and hopefully by the end of this year 2025 a proposal will be published that will allow operation in the efficient market but with respect for data protection and the EU's financial architecture. From 2026 onwards we have a long way to discover with the use of Digital Euro.