Germany CBDC Tracker

Germany is in the experimental phase of its central bank digital currency (CBDC) development. Although Germany is a member of the Eurozone, its central bank (the Deutsche Bundesbank) has been actively testing CBDC designs and speaking out about the issue.

Note: This page is dedicated to the work done by the government in Germany. However, Germany is a member of the European Union and Eurozone. If the European Central Bank launches a CBDC (referred to as a digital euro), then this page will be changed to reflect that. Until then, the Eurozone page has notes about the development of the digital euro.

CBDC History and Development

Burkhard Balz, member of the executive board of the Deutsche Bundesbank, delivered a speech in 2021 saying, “CBDCs are one of the most exciting developments facing central banks today – not just in Europe, but worldwide.” Balz then went on to describe questions that must first be considered and cautioned that “central banks would be well-advised to be diligent and take their time.” However, near the end of his speech, he revealed that “experimental work is currently supporting the analysis of possible technical designs of a digital euro and their implications.” Therefore, although it is unclear exactly what is taking place, Germany is considered to be in the experimental phase.

The Deutsche Bundesbank participated alongside the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Banque de France in Swift’s CBDC sandbox in 2023. The sandbox was used to test solutions for interlinking CBDCs.

In April 2024, the Deutsche Bundesbank announced that it partnered with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for a joint CBDC research project. The project is meant to investigate technologies that might be used for the design of a CBDC. However, Deutsche Bundesbank president Joachim Nagel later clarified that a digital euro is unlikely to be launched before 2028.

In June 2024, Deutsche Bundesbank board member Burkhard Balz said, “The digital euro would reduce dependence on major payment companies. A digital euro would therefore make a significant contribution to European sovereignty.” He added that discussions were underway about setting holding limits between €500 ($569) to €3,000 ($3,419). When asked about the skepticism expressed by financial institutions, Balz said, “I think that we are on the right path to dispelling the opposition.” Balz was also asked if a CBDC would mean the end of cash. He said the suggestion was “simply nonsense.”

Later in July 2024, Deutsche Bundesbank president Joachim Nagel said, “We need to decide whether to issue CBDC for the general public or for payment professionals like financial institutions.”  Noting that the public is largely unaware of the European Central Bank’s CBDC development, president Nagel said, “As long as the final decision on the digital euro has not been taken, it makes little sense for the Eurosystem to launch a large-scale public awareness drive.”

Deutsche Bundesbank president Joachim Nagel later said in October 2024 that a European CBDC is needed because “there is still no single pan-European solution for digital payments when people go shopping in stores or online.” Nagel acknowledged that private sector provides have “made meaningful progress,” but said it was not enough. Nagel added that “Once we have accomplished a digital euro for all users within the euro area, it will, in my view, be worth considering making it accessible to users outside the euro area as well.”

Burkhard Balz, member of the executive board of the Deutsche Bundesbank, said in January 2025 that he sees having a European CBDC “as a step forward to make our currency future-proof and, ultimately, a clear sign for greater European autonomy.” He further noted that around €1.2 billion ($1.37 billion) had been allocated to building the CBDC. Finally, Balz said that Facebook’s 2019 Libra whitepaper was “when we realized that we central banks had to push ahead with a digital currency ourselves, because it couldn’t be ruled out that other technology companies might launch similar projects.”

In February 2025, Deutsche Bundesbank president Joachim Nagel said, “CBDCs will play a role in future resilience [of Europe].”

In March 2025, Deutsche Bundesbank board member Burkard Balz described a retail CBDC as a “digital twin of cash.” Yet, he made no mention of the risks of surveillance and control that make a CBDC distinctly different from cash.

In April 2025, Deutsche Bundesbank president Joachim Nagel said, “The digital euro, for example, can reduce the currently still high degree of reliance on a handful of non-European enterprises in the field of electronic payments.”

In November 2025, Deutsche Bundesbank board member Burkard Balz said Europeans need a CBDC because the digital money they currently use is often provided by non-European companies like Visa or Mastercard. He didn’t explain how, but he said the digital euro would still work if there was a crisis, cyberattack, natural disaster, or internet outage. Balz later spoke at another event where he said, “Europe cannot afford to remain heavily dependent on foreign providers for critical infrastructure like payments. The digital euro would operate entirely on European infrastructures, granting a degree of independence.”

Deutsche Bundesbank board member Burkard Balz was interviewed in January 2026 as “the man for the digital euro.” He argued that a CBDC is needed because Europeans shouldn’t be using American payment systems. Going further, Balz advocated for sanctions evasion, saying “We want to avoid getting caught” in a situation where American payments are frozen. When discussing holding limits, Balz said he wouldn’t mind a €500 holding limit so long as the account is connected to a bank.

In February 2026, Deutsche Bundesbank president Joachim Nagel acknowledged that “rules, regulations, and bureaucratic costs hamper growth and investment in Europe.” However, he still pushed for more government involvement via the introduction of a CBDC. In another speech, Nagel said, “In addition to the retail variant of central bank digital currency—the digital euro—the Eurosystem is also working on a wholesale variant.” Deutsche Bundesbank board member Burkard Balz also gave a speech saying, “Our objective is clear: wholesale payments and settlement should continue to be anchored in central bank money, even with the emergence of tokenised assets and new infrastructures.” He went on to highlight the Pontes and Appia projects, saying, “Once we have addressed the backbone, we can then turn to the public-facing aspect of CBDC: the digital euro.”

In March 2026, Deutsche Bundesbank official Alexandra Hachmeister was asked, “Why is the digital being built.” Hachmeister said it’s because of geopolitical risks. Reflecting on the issue more, Hachmeister said Europeans have been cut off by the International Criminal Court, and she doesn’t want anyone to experience that. This statement adds to a growing list of proposals from the European Central Bank, where the digital euro would be used for sanctions evasion.

Human Rights and Civil Liberties Concerns

According to Freedom House,  Germany ranks highly across nearly all metrics. Furthermore, it must be said that the ability of the German government to abuse a CBDC directly is debatable because the CBDC that would be used in Germany would be provided by the European Central Bank—representing the European Union. Even then, however, it’s important to recognize that the creation of a CBDC could open the door to risks to financial privacy and financial freedom.

For additional information on concerns regarding violations of human rights and civil liberties, see the following reports by Amnesty International, Financial Tyranny Index, Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, Privacy International, the Tyranny Tracker, and the U.S. Department of State. For additional information on concerns regarding the risks of CBDCs, see the following webpage and report by the Cato Institute: The Risks of CBDCs and Central Bank Digital Currency: Assessing the Risks and Dispelling the Myths.

For additional information regarding metrics, the methodology page explains each of the data points and provides their respective sources.