Digital Euro Pilot: ECB Sets Two October 2026 Dates

The European Central Bank has opened its digital euro pilot project to applications, and two dates in October 2026 are now fixed. Merchants selling online can express their interest in taking part until October 27, 2026. Before that, on Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. CET, an online information session on the pilot takes place. The ECB has deliberately opened this session to anyone interested, consumers included.

Both dates appear on the English-language version of the ECB pilot page. The German version of the same page does not list them at the time of writing, and carries a note at the top directing readers to the English version for current information. Anyone informing themselves in German walks straight past both dates.

One point for context: the pilot is a test, and it is not a launch. The ECB is examining a beta version, and by its own account it will decide whether to issue a digital euro at all only once the digital euro regulation has been adopted.

What the ECB is testing in the digital euro pilot project

The digital euro is central bank digital money, known in English as a central bank digital currency, or CBDC. The definition in one sentence: electronic money issued by the central bank itself, as opposed to the balance in your current account, which is a claim on your commercial bank.