Will the EU run the 'Digital Euro' on public chains like Ethereum/Solana? How should we view this

• Stimulated by the advancement of the US stablecoin legislation, the EU is internally 'restarting the Digital Euro project'.

• One key discussion point: no longer just building private chains/central bank-built chains, but issuing and settling on public chains like Ethereum, Solana (or their sub-networks/L2).

What does this mean (Technology & Policy)

1. 'Public Chainization' = Legitimacy + Composability

• If the Digital Euro is issued on a public chain in the form of controlled contracts (like a restricted version of ERC-20 / Solana Token-2022 with transfer hooks), it can be directly integrated with existing wallets, payment, and DeFi/RWA infrastructure (operating under whitelists/blacklists and limits/usage restrictions).

• This is equivalent to plugging central bank currency into the 'USB port' of the public chain, with interoperability far superior to standalone private chain pilots.

2. Compliance and Privacy Rebalancing

• The EU has high requirements for KYC/AML, traceability while protecting small privacy, and will mostly use restricted token standards + address whitelists + zero-knowledge proofs to achieve 'small anonymity/large auditability'.

3. Why not just make a private chain

• Private chains have poor interoperability and barren ecosystems; public chains can leverage mature wallets, oracles, custodial services, and RWA protocols, resulting in lower deployment/maintenance costs and faster market responsiveness.

Potential impacts on the market/sector

Short term: Positive sentiment from news, but it won't be immediately monetized; more of a policy expectation booster.

Medium term (once pilot projects are implemented):

• ETH/SOL ecosystem: Identity, compliant wallets, oracles, RWA, and compliant DeFi will directly benefit (e.g., Chainlink/compliant ERC-3643, Solana's transfer-hook solutions, etc.).

• Stablecoins and RWA: Banks/payment institutions can connect on-chain settlements of euro cash/bonds with the Digital Euro, creating a more complete compliance loop for RWA.

• Compliance infrastructure: KYC wallets, custodians (like Fireblocks), on-chain identity, and privacy computation (ZK) will see incremental demand.

This is a medium-term positive for the ETH/SOL ecosystem and compliant Web3 infrastructure: if the Digital Euro embraces public chains, it means a real connection between 'sovereign currency and crypto networks'. Don't overtrade on short-term sentiment; focus on official documents and pilot project details, as they are the key catalysts determining sector premiums $ETH $SOL