European Union officials have accelerated work on a digital version of the single currency after the United States enacted its ‘Genius Act’, a federal law that sets ground rules for dollar-backed stablecoins. The new U.S. framework has heightened concerns in Brussels that euro-denominated tokens could lose ground to their dollar rivals, prompting policymakers to speed up technical and policy deliberations. Sources cited by the Financial Times said the European Central Bank is now considering issuing the digital euro on an open, public blockchain such as Ethereum or Solana rather than the private rails previously favoured. A move to a permissionless network would mark a significant shift in central-bank digital-currency design and could make the token immediately interoperable with existing wallets, exchanges and decentralised-finance applications. The ECB remains in a ‘preparation phase’ that runs until October 2025, during which it is drafting a rulebook, conducting user research and testing with about 70 market participants. Any launch would still require EU legislation, and officials stress that no final decision on architecture, privacy safeguards or holding limits has been taken. The exploration of public chains nonetheless signals the bloc’s determination to preserve the euro’s relevance in an increasingly tokenised payments landscape governed by MiCA.