ECB President Lagarde:

According to ChainCatcher, CoinDesk reports that European Central Bank President Lagarde stated in a speech that Europe should not simply replicate the US stablecoin model, but should prioritize building a tokenized settlement infrastructure centered around central bank money.

She pointed out that the 310 billion US dollar stablecoin market dominated by Tether and Circle poses financial stability risks and could transmit stress to underlying asset markets during crises. Lagarde believes that the technological advantages of stablecoins can be replicated by central bank infrastructure, but their monetary function introduces unacceptable financial stability risks. She cited the 2023 Silicon Valley Bank collapse, which caused USDC to briefly depeg, as evidence.

Although a consortium of 12 major European banks including ING, BBVA, and BNP Paribas plans to launch a private digital euro later this year, claiming Europe faces a "dollarization risk", Lagarde still calls for EU countries to support the development of central bank digital currencies. The European Central Bank aims to launch the digital euro by 2029.