On October 18th local time, the European Central Bank took another step on the path of promoting the digital euro. The European Central Bank stated on the same day that it will begin the two-year "preparation phase" of the digital euro on November 1st. The European Central Bank stated on the same day that in the preparation stage, it will finalize relevant rules, select private sector partners, and carry out some relevant "tests and experiments". The European Central Bank also stated: "In two years, the European Central Bank Council will decide whether to proceed with the next stage of preparation work, paving the way for the future issuance and launch of digital euros. The European Commission announced a legislative proposal for the digital euro in June this year, with plans to pass legislation granting the digital euro legal tender status. Although the digital euro has multiple advantages in terms of security and convenience, it may also lead to the transfer of bank deposits, posing a threat to commercial banking operations, especially small banks. According to the data of the European Commission, the scale of electronic payment in the EU has increased from 184.2 trillion euros (about 201.7 trillion dollars) in 2017 to 240 trillion euros in 2021, and the COVID-19 epidemic has accelerated the growth of electronic payment business. (Editor: Chen Jiawen)