christine lagarde : digital euro - a common european project video address by ms christine lagarde, president of the european central bank, to the high level conference " towards a legislative framework enabling a digital euro for citizens and businesses ", brussels, 7 november 2022. * * * i'm very happy to be here with you via this video message and warmly welcome you to this high - level conference on the digital euro. having so many decision - makers gathered here today shows the strong political backing the digital euro project has gained at the european level. since we kicked off the investigation phase a year ago, we have worked very closely with you all, the european commission, the european parliament and the euro area finance ministers. and we have also engaged closely with market participants, including intermediaries, consumers and retailers, to hear their views. this has allowed us to achieve steady progress. i sincerely thank you for this strong cooperation. and i think that it shows that the digital euro is not a stand - alone project, confined to the payment domain. it is rather a crosspolicy and truly european initiative that has the potential to affect society as a whole. maintaining citizens'trust in money and payment services in the digital age is an important objective in itself. but it is of even greater significance for the european economy at large. after all, a trusted, efficient and secure payment system is the basis for our economies to function effectively. for many decades, this basis has been provided by a hybrid model for payments : central banks issue public money - essentially cash for individuals and reserve accounts for banks. the private sector relies on it to provide the bulk of total money around 85 % - in the form of commercial bank money. key to this hybrid model is that citizens can convert private for public money at par, which ensures that all forms of money can be used indiscriminately for payments throughout the economy. disruptive transformation but this reliable model for payments is now undergoing a potentially disruptive transformation, led by three developments. first, people are increasingly paying digitally instead of using cash. almost half of euro area consumers say they prefer to pay with cashless means of payments, such as cards. we will continue to provide cash, but if it is used less and less for payments, public money could ultimately lose its role as the monetary anchor for the hybrid model, threatening its key function in securing trust in payments, with implications for the economy. payments are a public good that is

the digital euro in payments as well as citizens'broad access to the digital euro across the euro area. these are important issues for co - legislators to consider in their discussions. conclusion let me conclude. the digital euro is more than just a eurosystem initiative, it is a common european project. it would allow us to ensure that money and payments remain trusted, secure 3 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches and efficient in a rapidly changing digital environment. and by doing so, the digital euro would essentially serve wider public policy objectives, such as strengthening europe's strategic autonomy and economic efficiency. to realise this vision, we must all play our part, striving for the best possible alignment between policymakers, bearing in mind our respective roles and mandates, and always seeking broad support from european citizens. the timely adoption of a legal framework for the digital euro would give all stakeholders the necessary legal certainty to prepare for its possible introduction and send a strong sign of political support. i'm convinced that combining our strength and continuing to work together towards this common vision of a digital euro is the best way to manage the transition to the digital age. thank you. 4 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches