Headline: Twelve European banks launch Qivalis to prevent “digital dollarization” — and put the euro onchain Europe’s biggest banks are racing to keep the euro relevant as finance migrates to blockchain networks. Qivalis, a bank-backed stablecoin initiative led by CEO Jan-Oliver Sell, warns that without a liquid euro stablecoin, Europe risks ceding onchain financial activity to dollar-denominated tokens like Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC. Why this matters - Stablecoins have moved from crypto curiosities to core plumbing of digital finance. The market sits at roughly $314 billion today and, according to Jefferies estimates, could expand to $800 billion–$1.15 trillion over the next five years. - In traditional markets the euro represents about 20–25% of global activity; on public blockchains it accounts for only about 0.2% of transactions, Sell says — a stark mismatch that could hollow out European influence in the next wave of financial infrastructure. What Qivalis plans - Qivalis is a consortium project backed by 12 major European banks, including ING, UniCredit and BBVA. It aims to issue a MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin and to act as the “interface between blockchain and the euro.” - The consortium’s stated ambition is to become the default euro-denominated token for global crypto markets — not just a token issuer but a piece of foundational infrastructure, with distribution into exchanges, custodians and DeFi platforms. The clock is ticking - Qivalis expects to launch once it secures regulatory approval, targeting the second half of the year depending on licensing decisions by the Dutch central bank. - The project is explicitly positioned as a complement — not a competitor — to the European Central Bank’s digital euro initiative, which the ECB says won’t arrive before 2029. Whereas the ECB’s digital euro is public and centralized, Qivalis will be a private stablecoin governed under MiCA rules and built for public-network use cases. Why banks believe a euro stablecoin is needed - Fragmentation has hampered earlier euro stablecoin efforts: a handful of bank-issued tokens would dilute liquidity and usability. A coordinated approach, the consortium argues, can create the breadth and depth needed to make a euro token viable onchain. - Currency risk also motivates demand: European users earning yields denominated in dollars face FX exposure that could erase returns. A native euro token would reduce that friction and preserve euro-based financial activity as it moves onchain. Bigger picture and risks - Sell frames the issue as one of financial and digital sovereignty: “If we don’t have a euro onchain with depth of liquidity, then the only alternative is the U.S. dollar,” he told CoinDesk. That dynamic, he warns, could lead to structural dollarization of blockchain finance. - The goal is not to expel the dollar but to keep the euro competitive as the second global reserve currency in the emerging digital layer of finance. Next steps - Regulators will be central. Qivalis needs licensing and MiCA alignment to proceed, and the project will be tested on its ability to seed liquidity and gain adoption where dollar stablecoins are already entrenched. - If the consortium can stitch together distribution across banks, exchanges and DeFi, it could create a durable euro onchain alternative — and reshape which currency dominates the rails of global digital finance. Bottom line: Europe’s banks are betting that a coordinated, regulated euro stablecoin is the quickest way to prevent onchain markets from becoming permanently dollar-dominated. Qivalis aims to be that euro-native cornerstone — but success will depend on regulatory green lights and the consortium’s ability to build real liquidity and ecosystem support fast. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news