The association of 10 European banks has made a firm known as Qivalis to roll out a euro-pegged stablecoin, as per an announcement from the group. This step focuses on offering an alternative to U.S. dollar-denominated digital payment systems.
The participating banks comprise BNP Paribas, ING, UniCredit, Banca Sella, KBC, DekaBank, Danske Bank, SEB, Caixabank and Raiffeisen Bank International. BNP Paribas joined forces with the consortium after the original announcement, as per the group.
It is anticipated that the token will roll out in the second half of this year, pending regulatory approval and licensing, as per the consortium. An ex-CEO of Coinbase Germany, Jan-Oliver Sell, will act as chief executive of Qivalis, and Howard Davis, ex-chair of NatWest, got appointed as chair.
The Plans For Broadening
The company has planned to hire 45 to 50 employees in the upcoming two years, having 1/3rd of the positions filled so far, as per the company. In the beginning, the stablecoin will aim for cryptocurrency trading, providing near-instant, low-cost payments and settlements, and will have plans to widen use cases later, as per the consortium.
This step is followed by a quick surge, mainly in U.S. dollar-backed tokens like Tether. Euro-pegged alternatives are not unlimited in the market. Societe Generale’s SG-FORGE has 64 million euros in circulation in recent times, as per the available data.
Regulators such as the European Central Bank have elevated concerns that private stablecoins could redirect funds from regulated banking institutions and impact monetary policy.
Qivalis is looking for an Electronic Money Institution licence from the Dutch central bank and has worked with the ECB, which further supported a European-led solution to ensure strategic autonomy in payments, as per the sources close to the discussions.
Another group of banks in Europe and the US is also looking for stablecoin issuance, showing surged institutional interest in digital currencies, as per the industry reports.
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