The European Central Bank (ECB) has published the outcome report of its Digital Euro innovation platform. DPS and INIT were among only a few partners involved in both the Visionaries and Pioneers streams.
With our joint contribution, we developed a practical use case for tap-and-go payments in public transport. INIT contributed its many years of experience in ticketing and public transport, while DPS contributed its in-depth expertise in European payment transactions.
In its report, the ECB emphasizes that the digital euro has the potential to create a “harmonized pan-European mobility and transport ecosystem”. Our work focused precisely on this area:
- Visionaries stream: Development of a scenario for Europe-wide harmonized tap-and-go payments with dynamic pricing, daily limits, and offline capability.
- Pioneers Stream: Technical testing in the simulated back-end for the digital euro provided by the ECB. Among other things, we developed a prototype for a mobile digital wallet that was seamlessly integrated into the provided infrastructure. APIs were used to implement different payment types (P2B, P2P, B2P) and test mechanisms such as amount reservation, end-of-day settlement, and funding/defunding processes.
“The use case we contributed is so special because it appeals to a very broad audience. Practically everyone uses public transportation, regardless of income or life situation. This is precisely why this application scenario could be decisive for the market acceptance of the digital euro,” says Emre Taspolatoglu, Manager Technology at DPS.
This allowed us to demonstrate how the new digital currency can be used in practice – and we made a tangible contribution to preparing for the future introduction of the digital euro and highlighting its relevance in everyday life. In addition, we have gained valuable experience that will enable us to provide practical advice and support to financial institutions on the technical integration of the digital euro.
Note in accordance with ECB communication guidelines:
This project was conducted independently and reflects the sole views and analysis of the authors. The European Central Bank (ECB) did not participate in, contribute to, or endorse any aspect of this work. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed herein are entirely those of the authors and do not represent the views or positions of the ECB.
