This book looks at the new phenomenon of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) with a focus on the launch of the Digital Euro in the European Union. It contains treatment of the subject of CBDC from various perspectives, with each of the authors formulating viewpoints regarding this new phenomenon. It also offers an insightful assessment of the legal status of a central bank digital currency, engaging in the theoretical effort of testing the legal implications of the birth of a digital complement to cash. The chapters focus on the rationale for a digital Euro, its ability to aid financial inclusion, the constitutional foundations of the CBDC, demands of a digital euro on the side of the beneficiaries of the retail payment system, and the “mechanics” of the CBDC in relation to its issuance and governance. It will be of interest to financial services, banking, financial regulation, and monetary policy researchers and scholars alongside lawyers and policymakers.
