According to reports issued on Friday, the European Central Bank (ECB) has finalised prototypes for a digital euro as it prepares to make a decision later this year on whether to develop the EU’s fiat currency in a new format. The European Central Bank (ECB) says a proposed central bank digital currency (CBDC) can be designed to boost innovation, but it is wary of employing Web3-style distributed ledger technology and smart contracts. “This exercise shows that it is possible to smoothly integrate the digital euro design choices into the existing payment landscape while leaving ample scope for innovative features and technologies,” ECB Executive Board member Fabio Panetta wrote to Irene Tinagli of the European Parliament.