ING, UniCredit and seven other European banks will launch a stablecoin for euro in the second half of 2026. The project will meet MiCA stablecoin requirements.

European banks will launch MiCA stablecoin in 2026

A group of leading European banks, including ING from the Netherlands and Italy’s UniCredit, are joining forces to create a stablecoin pegged to the euro. It is planned to be issued in the second half of 2026 as part of the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) rules.

CaixaBank (Spain), Danske Bank (Denmark), Raiffeisen Bank International (Austria), KBC (Belgium), SEB (Sweden), DekaBank (Germany) and Banca Sella (Italy) have also joined the initiative. A separate company has been created to manage the project, headquartered in the Netherlands.

The goal is a European payments standard

The stablecoin is designed to be a local alternative to the dollarized stablecoin market and contribute to the EU’s strategic autonomy in payments. It will provide instant and cheap transactions 24/7, expand cross-border transfers, and become the basis for programmable payments and settlements in supply chains and digital assets.

“We believe that the development of digital payments requires an industry-wide approach, and it is important that banks adhere to common standards,” said Floris Lugt, head of digital assets at ING.

Background: Digital Euro Delayed

The launch of the private banking stablecoin comes against the backdrop of a digital euro delay, which the ECB expects to see no earlier than 2029. The European Parliament is only due to set the framework for a future CBDC by May 2026.

Some experts are already calling the new stablecoin the “obituary of the digital euro,” while others are calling it a potential “backdoor to CBDC.” At the same time, the example of the United States, which abandoned CBDC in favor of dollar-based stablecoins in 2025, shows that the market can bet on private digital currencies.

Related: Stablecoins: What They Are, How They Work, Risks and Prospects