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【Lagarde:EUR The euro area economy is resilient, and the European Central Bank is preparing to launch a digital EUR】

European Central Bank President Lagarde said that the September EUR euro area 3.8%inflation rate mainly reflects high energy costs, and the European Central Bank expects this to ease next year. She noted that the energy shock is expected to keep EUR euro area inflation above the central bank’s target in the first half of 2027 year, but that a prudent policy response remains appropriate at present. She made the remarks on Saturday during the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund. Lagarde also said that the European Central Bank is designing a digital EUR She said that, in the retail payments sector, the European Central Bank is preparing to supplement cash in digital form by launching a digital EUR for everyday payments. The digital EUR will further stimulate innovation and competition in the retail payments sector, ensure the continued coexistence of public and private solutions, and support Europe’s strategic autonomy in payments. Cointelegraph previously reported on September 21 that the European Central Bank had launched the Pontes system, allowing financial institutions to settle wholesale tokenized-asset transactions in central bank money and providing an alternative to private settlement assets such as stablecoins. The system initially offers a set of core services and is expected to be fully implemented by 2028 year.