CaixaBank joins eight European banks in launching a cryptocurrency

BarcelonaCaixaBank has decided to join eight other major European banks – ING, Banca Sella, KBC, Danske Bank, DekaBank, UniCredit, SEB and Raiffeisen Bank International – to create a stablecoin pegged to the euro, designed in accordance with the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). stablecoin It is a type of cryptocurrency designed to minimize the volatility of its value—as is the case with cryptoassets of this type, such as Bitcoin—by linking it to one or more assets with a stable value. In this case, it is the euro.

This new digital payment instrument, based on technology blockchain, aims to consolidate itself as a trusted benchmark in the European financial ecosystem. stablecoin It will enable near-instant, low-cost payments and settlements available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including cross-border transactions, improvements in supply chain management, and the settlement of digital assets such as securities and cryptocurrencies.

Mariona Vicens, Director of Digital Transformation and Advanced Analytics at CaixaBank, noted that "technology is profoundly transforming the financial infrastructure and, in particular, the standards for making payments and transactions. At CaixaBank, we have been at the forefront of developing innovations that have subsequently contributed to the transformation of both retail and wholesale payment services."

Strategic Autonomy

The CaixaBank representative highlights that they have managed to gather "solid support from relevant banking entities." She affirms that there is high potential to gain new support from other financial and technological actors. According to Vicens, "the initiative can mark an important step in the construction of a robust and trustworthy European digital payments ecosystem that reinforces European strategic autonomy in the field of payments."

This digital currency will be regulated by the European Union's MiCA Regulation, and is expected to be issued during the second half of 2026. The consortium of the stablecoin, with the aforementioned banks as founding members, has established a new company in the Netherlands, which will apply for a license as an electronic money institution and will be supervised by the Dutch Central Bank.

The consortium is open to additional banks joining, and a CEO is expected to be appointed in the near future, subject to regulatory approval. The initiative aims to provide a European option for the electronic money market. stablecoins dominated by dollar-denominated options, contributing to Europe's strategic autonomy in payments, according to CaixaBank. Participating banks will be able to offer value-added services, such as payment wallets. stablecoin and custody.