Nine European banks--ING, Banca Sella, KBC, Danske Bank, DekaBank, UniCredit, SEB, CaixaBank and Raiffeisen Bank International--said on Thursday 25 September 2025 that they had established a new company in the Netherlands to launch a euro-denominated stablecoin. The entity planned to apply for an e-money licence from the Dutch Central Bank and would be regulated under the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation.
The stablecoin was designed to enable near-instant, low-cost payments, provide 24/7 access to cross-border transactions and support programmable payments. It would also be usable for settlements in both securities and cryptocurrencies.
The consortium said the initiative would strengthen Europe’s strategic autonomy in digital payments. Member banks would be able to offer related services, such as wallets and custody, building on the stablecoin infrastructure.
Floris Lugt, digital assets lead at ING and joint public representative of the project, said digital payments were essential for euro-denominated market infrastructure. He argued that blockchain’s programmability and continuous availability delivered efficiency and transparency, but that the sector required an industry-wide approach based on common standards.
The group expected to appoint a chief executive in the coming months, subject to regulatory approval, and indicated it remained open to additional banks joining the initiative.
If authorised, the stablecoin would mark one of the largest cross-border banking collaborations in Europe’s digital payments market and could position the euro more firmly in the global stablecoin sector.
