Nexi, in temporary grouping with Deutsche Telekom, has been selected by the European Central Bank (ECB) as one of the two successful tenderers, for the provision of Network Service Provider (NSP) Connectivity for the digital euro, and the one providing NSP services to support the pilot project. This announcement follows the conclusion of the ECB's negotiated public procurement procedure to select contractors for the provision of secure, reliable, and high-performance connectivity services for the future digital currency.
The implementation of this high-performance network—which will interconnect the data centers hosting the components of the Digital Euro Service Platform (DESP) as well as enable crucial external actors such as Payment Service Providers (PSPs) and National Central Banks to access the Digital Euro Service Platform (DESP)—is a foundational pillar for the successful launch and operation of the digital euro project.
The joint solution proposed by Nexi and Deutsche Telekom offers a robust and scalable connectivity and mediation platform designed to enable the end-to-end exchange of digital euro transactions across the entire DESP ecosystem. Engineered to guarantee the smooth delivery of digital euro services to end-users, the architecture supports high levels of scalability and elasticity, allowing resources to be adjusted efficiently to meet varying transaction volumes and peak usage scenarios.
The total duration of the service agreement is ten years from the contract's official start date.
“The ECB’s decision to award the temporary grouping Nexi and Deutsche Telekom one of the two digital euro connectivity contracts represents an important milestone for our Group and further confirms Nexi’s role as a strategic infrastructure partner in the European payments’ ecosystem. The digital euro is a key initiative for the future of payments and for strengthening Europe’s digital sovereignty” commented Bernardo Mingrone, CEO of Nexi Group. “This ten-year service agreement represents a significant industrial achievement, recognizing our technological capabilities and Nexi’s ability to make a concrete contribution to an initiative of this scale. With our pan-European scale, strong local presence and distinctive technological expertise, Nexi is positioned to help driving the digital euro transformation and the future evolution of digital payments, providing a secure, resilient and scalable infrastructure to support banks, businesses and institutions across the euro area.”
“The euro area financial ecosystem depends on secure, resilient and trusted digital infrastructure. As Europe’s largest telecommunications company, Deutsche Telekom, together with our partners, is proud to contribute to the digital euro initiative led by the ECB on behalf ofthe Eurosystem. For decades, we have delivered mission-critical connectivity and digital services to governments, public institutions and enterprises across Europe. Through initiatives such as European quantum communication infrastructure and IRIS² and other classified network projects with security or government institutions, Deutsche Telekom is helping build the secure, resilient digital infrastructure Europe needs to protect its institutions, strengthen its strategic autonomy and advance its digital sovereignty. This contribution reflects our long-term commitment to strengthening Europe’s digital sovereignty and supporting the resilience of its financial infrastructure (Gottfried Ludewig, Senior Vice President / Leader Public Sector and Health Industry Deutsche Telekom).”
