The euro stablecoin initiative announced by European banks in September has appointed a chief executive in Jan-Oliver Sell, who combines blockchain expertise with a background in traditional banking. The former Germany head of Coinbase previously worked, among other firms, for Morgan Stanley.

During his tenure at Coinbase, the company obtained Germany’s first crypto custody licence from BaFin. Amsterdam will serve as the headquarters of Qivalis, as the joint venture of now ten banks has been named. In day-to-day management, Sell is supported by CFO Floris Lugt, who previously worked at ING.

At launch, the consortium comprised eight institutions, including DekaBank and UniCredit. Citigroup Ireland later joined, followed recently by BNP Paribas, closing the France gap. Other members are Banca Sella, CaixaBank, Danske Bank, ING, KBC, Raiffeisen Bank International, and SEB.

Qivalis plans to issue a euro stablecoin designed to function as a standard across the entire euro area. Lugt outlined three core use cases: transactions in DeFi and crypto markets, cross-border payments, and the settlement of tokenized assets.

An e-money institution licence has been applied for with the Dutch financial regulator DNB. According to Sell, operational activity is slated to begin from mid-2026, following the build-out of proprietary infrastructure and the conclusion of commercial partnerships. A native euro stablecoin would make a major contribution to Europe’s monetary autonomy, the Qivalis chief executive said at a press conference. At present, dollar-based stablecoins dominate the market with a share exceeding 95%.

If Europeans want their currency to remain relevant, they require private sector efforts to make commercial bank money marketable as stablecoins or deposit tokens for an on-chain economy. The regulatory framework is provided by the MiCA Regulation. Once a stablecoin exceeds a volume of 5 billion euros, banks are no longer required to hold 60% of reserves as bank deposits, but only 40%. A correspondingly larger share can then be invested in higher-yielding government bonds.

This collateral regulation distinguishes euro stablecoins from the dollar stablecoin market leader Tether (USDT), which operates through offshore structures and enjoys far greater freedom in how it invests its reserves. Alongside gold, its reserves also include Bitcoin holdings. When Bitcoin prices fell, this triggered criticism after under-collateralisation emerged. For its planned US stablecoin business, Tether will have to adapt to the American regulatory framework via its US subsidiary. The FDIC plans to present details shortly on the proposed deposit insurance scheme for US dollar stablecoins.

Across Europe, banks and the securities industry are broadly preparing for stablecoins as regulated financial instruments. BNP Paribas, which has now joined Qivalis, has also been a member since October of another euro stablecoin consortium that includes Banco Santander, Bank of America, Barclays, Citi, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, MUFG Bank, TD Bank Group and UBS. However, that consortium is not yet as advanced as Qivalis, which has been in preparation for more than two years. What matters, according to Lugt, is that interoperable structures emerge so that money flows can fully benefit from the advantages of DLT infrastructure: fewer intermediaries, instant settlement and programmable payments.

The chair of Qivalis’s supervisory board is Sir Howard Davies, a veteran of the British financial industry. His career includes senior roles at Royal Bank of Scotland, the Bank of England, the London School of Economics and the Financial Conduct Authority. His appointment establishes a bridge to British institutions. According to Sell, talks are under way with several banks regarding possible membership in Qivalis – the name signalling a blend of „quality“ and „value“.