Digital euro will run on open European standards, so check your terminals and apps against CPACE, nexo and Berlin Group now

In April 2026 the ECB signed agreements with three European standard setters to reuse their open standards for digital euro online payments. CPACE, from the European Card Payment Cooperation, covers contactless tap-to-pay between a device and a terminal. nexo connects merchant systems to the back ends of PSPs and acquirers, including cash machines. Berlin Group standards support payments by alias, such as a mobile number, plus balance checks and payments started in merchant apps. The ECB is still talking with the European Payments Council, for example on QR codes.

For PSPs this is a practical signal. Digital euro acceptance is meant to build on standards you may already use, not on a new proprietary stack. So run a gap check now: which of your terminals, acquiring hosts and mobile apps already support CPACE, nexo or Berlin Group, and which would need upgrades or vendor work? Feed the answer into your budget and vendor contracts early.

There is also an upside. The ECB says these standards could let European schemes reach new markets, and it presents co-badging with private schemes as a voluntary option. Note that co-badging may need legal changes, for example on the Interchange Fee Regulation, and the digital euro regulation itself is still a proposal. Plan for it, but do not bet your roadmap on it yet.

— Lagarde