Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
A statement issued in Brussels by the Eurogroup, which includes EU member states dealing with the single European currency, said: “The Eurogroup regularly engages in dialogue with the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Commission on the digital euro. We issued a statement in January 2023 summarizing the main policy dimensions.” for the digital euro emerging from our discussions, thus supporting the work carried out by the European System and the Commission, with full respect for the institutional roles and mandates of all actors involved. We have continued our regular exchanges on the political dimension of the digital euro throughout this year.
Last June, we welcomed the publication of the Commission's single currency package, which is now being discussed by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union as co-legislators.
  Today, we reach another milestone as the European system has completed its investigation phase. We welcome the decision of the ECB Governing Council to move forward to the next phase of the project, during which the Eurosystem will further explore and test the design and functionality aspects of a digital euro. This preparation phase does not prejudge the future decision on the possible issuance of a digital euro, which will only come at a later stage and will necessarily depend on EU legislative developments.
In parallel with the legislative deliberations of EU co-legislators and the ongoing preparatory work within the European system, the Eurogroup will continue to play an active role in providing a complementary strategic political foundation for future action.
On the other hand, the European Union Council adopted on Thursday a decision appointing Claudia Buch as President of the Supervisory Board of the European Central Bank. She will hold this position for five years, starting January 1, 2024.
Claudia Buch, who is currently Vice President of the Bundesbank, will replace Andrea Enria, who took over as President as of January 1, 2019.
The ECB has direct supervision over the most important banks under the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM). Currently, 109 banks are under the direct supervision of the European Central Bank. Banks are either the largest in their home country, have assets exceeding €30 billion in total assets or have significant cross-border operations. These banks own approximately 82% of banking assets in these countries.
As a supervisory authority, the European Central Bank closely monitors the health and safety of the European banking system. It has the power to conduct inspections to check banks' compliance with EU rules, require banks to allocate additional capital to mitigate risks, and can even withdraw banking licences.

The ECB's proposal to appoint Claudia Buch was approved by the European Parliament on 3 October 2023.