Experts from the industry are invited to join technical talks about the deployment of applications on Secure Elements on mobile devices

1 August 2024

The ECB is investigating the deployment of the digital euro’s offline functionality on an embedded Secure Element (eSE) and embedded SIM (eSIM) of end-user’s devices. The ECB aims to improve its understanding of market, technical, and business aspects of such a deployment, to facilitate a timely and seamless rollout of the offline digital euro solution.

Therefore, the ECB is inviting experts with expertise from the following fields:

• Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) of mobile device
• Mobile Network Operators (MNOs)
• specialised Trusted Service Managers (TSMs), facilitating the deployment of Service Provider applets from various industries.

to exchange in technical talks about the deployment on the Secure Elements of mobile devices processes.

The discussions will focus on typical technical methods for deploying applets on embedded Secure Elements, as well as the business considerations involved, including the setup and the roles of actors in this process.

The talks are expected to take place between 16th – 30th September. The talks will be held bilaterally at expert level as closed sessions with members of the ECB’s digital euro project team. Observers from National Central Banks may also join.

Each talk will be facilitated as a 60-min Q&A session, with detailed questions shared in advance with the selected experts. The questions will be among others around technical deployment approaches, contractual limitations and device capabilities.

To take part, please email DigitalEuro@ecb.europa.eu by 10th of September 2024, describing, in no more than 300 words, your expertise in the specified fields. Submissions will be evaluated for their relevance.

Background to the technical talks

Following the completion of the digital euro investigation phase launched by the Eurosystem in 2021, on 18 October 2023 the Governing Council of the ECB approved the launch of a two-year preparation phase. The aim of the preparation phase, which will last until 31 October 2025, is to build on the findings of the previous phase and lay the foundations for the potential issuance of a digital euro^[1]. As part of this phase, the Eurosystem is also carrying out a deeper dive into technical aspects of the digital euro, such as its offline functionality and a testing and rollout plan.

Participation eligibility

Any applicant submitting an application confirms not to participate in any form (single candidate, incl. any part of their organization - consortium members, affiliates, other entities, subcontractors, if applicable), in any of the ECB public tenders on Digital Euro components, namely PRO-009494 Offline Solution, PRO-009485 – Alias Lookup, PRO-009486 Secure exchange of Payment Information, PRO-009487 – Risk and Fraud Management, PRO-009488 App and Banking SDK.