As CBDCs move from concept to implementation, they are reshaping the relationship between money, technology, and state authority. This panel explores how CBDCs can strengthen monetary sovereignty. Experts will discuss the opportunities and challenges of designing digital currencies that balance national interests with the realities of an increasingly interconnected global economy.

Rethinking Money in the Digital Age: Why CBDC Matters

Money is changing, but not all digital instruments deserve to be called money. Over the past two decades, payment innovation has made money faster, more mobile, and increasingly embedded in digital platforms. Yet the classical functions of money—medium of exchange, store of value, unit of account, and standard of deferred payment—remain a demanding benchmark. Many private digital instruments meet only part of this test. Cryptocurrencies offer technological novelty but fail as stable money. Stablecoins improve usability but borrow credibility from sovereign currencies and remain vulnerable to private-issuer risk.

We argue that the central issue is not whether money will become digital; it already has. The real question is whether public money will remain accessible and relevant in a digital economy. Central bank digital currencies, including the digital euro, should be understood as a response to this structural challenge. A well-designed CBDC can preserve the role of central bank money as the monetary anchor, support payment resilience, enhance strategic autonomy, and offer a public alternative in an increasingly private and platform-based payment landscape. The future of money is digital, but its credibility must remain public.