The European Central Bank has picked 36 payment service providers, including some of the euro zone's biggest financial firms, to join the pilot programme for its digital euro project, it said on Tuesday. The ECB has been working on the ​digital euro for years, partly to wean the bloc off U.S.-based payment providers, and hopes for first issuance in 2029, provided that long-delayed legislation is put in place by the end of this year. The pilot, due to start in ⁠the second half of 2027, will last for 12 months and will test the digital euro's technical functionality ⁠and operational processes, and will also be used ... (full story)