A new working paper published by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) finds that consumer demand for the digital euro may be stronger than previously expected. The study, conducted in Austria and released in November 2025, suggests that around 45% of consumers would adopt a realistically designed digital euro, according to researchers Helmut Elsinger, Helmut Stix and Martin Summer.
The study Consumer preferences for a digital euro: insights from a discrete choice experiment in Austria is the first discrete choice experiment in Europe to quantify consumer trade offs for specific digital euro features. It reflects ongoing policy debates at the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Commission regarding privacy, security, offline payments, and cost structures.
Security outweighs privacy concerns
The strongest driver of digital euro adoption is security, particularly protection against financial loss. Moving from full liability (as with losing a physical wallet) to a capped loss of €250 increased adoption likelihood by 12 percentage points. Full protection raised it by 23 points.
By contrast, privacy-despite being central in public debate – had only a small marginal impact on average. The authors report that consumers showed “near indifference” between the two privacy models tested unless monetary incentives were introduced. Privacy-sensitive respondents (around one-third of the sample) reacted differently and were less willing to compromise.
Cost incentives also play a significant role
Monetary incentives-such as €5 or €10 monthly savings-significantly increased the probability of adoption, suggesting that tangible financial benefits could influence uptake. A €10 savings incentive increased adoption by about eight percentage points.
Offline use and form factor matter less
Offline functionality boosted adoption by only four percentage points, suggesting limited demand for this feature despite its importance for financial inclusion. Respondents also leaned slightly toward a card-based digital euro over an app, reflecting Austria’s strong card-payment habits.
Who is most likely to adopt?
Younger, educated, and financially risk-tolerant individuals showed a significantly higher intention to adopt the digital euro. Trust in the central bank emerged as a key factor: consumers with high ECB trust were 15 percentage points more likely to choose a digital euro.
Interestingly, cash users were not uniformly resistant. While many showed low adoption likelihood, a notable subgroup – young, tech-savvy and dissatisfied with cash acceptance – showed high interest.
What this means for EU policymakers
The BIS study provides one of the clearest empirical signals yet that a digital euro could gain early traction if designed with strong security guarantees and meaningful cost advantages. It also suggests that privacy, although politically sensitive, may not be the decisive adoption barrier it is often portrayed to be-except for a minority of strongly privacy-oriented citizens.
As the ECB continues its preparation phase and the European Commission refines its legislative package, these findings give policymakers a clearer view of which features could maximize citizen uptake.