How a CBDC works
There are two kinds. A retail CBDC is for the public: digital cash held in a wallet and spent in shops, online and between people. A wholesale CBDC is for banks and other financial institutions, to settle payments and securities trades between them.
Most retail designs have two tiers: the central bank issues the currency and runs the settlement core, and banks and payment providers open wallets, check identities and serve customers. A CBDC need not run on a blockchain.
Where CBDC projects stand
In the Bank for International Settlements' 2024 survey, published on 22 August 2025, 91% of the 93 central banks that answered were exploring a retail CBDC, a wholesale CBDC or both.
The ECB describes the digital euro as a digital form of cash, issued by the central bank and available to everyone in the euro area. Its preparation phase ran from November 2023 to October 2025, when the Governing Council decided to continue preparing. The ECB says the digital euro could be issued during 2029 if EU lawmakers adopt the regulation in the course of 2026, and that a decision on issuing will be considered only once the legislative process is complete.
What a CBDC would mean for payment products
A retail CBDC would be one more payment method. Providers would distribute wallets, and merchants and their acquirers would accept it beside cards and instant payments.
CBDC, stablecoin or bank deposit?
- Stablecoin
- Issued by a private company and backed by its reserves. A CBDC is issued by the central bank and is the central bank's own liability.
- Bank deposit
- Money in an account at a commercial bank, and a claim on that bank.
- Cryptocurrency
- Has no issuer and no peg. A CBDC is the official currency in another form.
Where a CBDC shows up in a platform
Modules that do the work
- Accounts & IBANsCustomer accounts with their own IBANs, on the partner bank and the rails you choose.
- CheckoutA hosted checkout for cards, wallets, bank payments and crypto, routed to the best provider.
- LedgerThe double-entry book of record behind every balance, fee and transfer.
Platforms that need it
Where it is written
The laws and standards this page's facts come from.
- ECB, Digital euro
- ECB, Digital euro: progress and timeline
- BIS Papers No 159, Results of the 2024 BIS survey on central bank digital currencies and crypto, 22 August 2025
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1114, MiCA, Article 2 and recital 13 (EUR-Lex)
General information, not legal advice: what applies to you depends on your services and your market.