Digital Euro to have built-in limitations, as Central Bank President says it will never be as private as cash

The EU financial industry and policymakers are rallying around the push to introduce a digital euro - a variety of the central bank issued digital money (CBDCs).

The banks seem on board, and the European Central Bank (ECB) certainly is, judging by statements made by its president, Christine Lagarde, who recently, among other things, remarked that a digital currency "will never be as anonymous as cash."

The train may have already left the station as far as Europe's autonomy in many areas - but the ECB chief believes that at least where payments are concerned, that autonomy can be still preserved, and, according to her, this would happen thanks to the digital euro.

Lagarde told a panel at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) event that cards and apps that people use these days in Europe are "not necessarily European" - and to "sell" the digital euro, she praised the possible future centralized digital currency as not only "safe and cheap" but also, "sovereign."

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