ECB picks Feedzai, G+D among preferred tech providers for digital euro

Feedzai and Giesecke + Devrient are among five “first-ranked” technology providers selected by the European Central Bank (ECB) to build five components of its system for managing the digital euro.

Suppliers were named in two ranks, with the first option getting service requests and the second “approached only if required,” the ECB says.

The ECB chose Feedzai to build the risk and fraud management component of the system, with Capgemini as the second option. G+D and its partners Nexi and Capgemini have been chosen for the offline solution, with the second option yet-unnamed. Partners Sapient and Tremend Software Consulting have been named for the alias lookup component, with Dutch payment company equensWorldline as backup. Almaviva and Fabrick won the app and SDK development job, with Sapient and Tremend second choice, and Senacor will get first dibs on the secure exchange of payment information, followed by equensWorldline.

All of the above have signed framework agreements, which do not entail any payment yet, but Feedzai estimates the risk and fraud management component alone could be worth 79.1 million euros (approximately US$92.9 million) or more, up to €237.3 million (US$278.6 million). Feedzai has subcontracted PwC for its work on that component.

“Being selected as the first-ranked tenderer in the framework agreement to secure the digital euro is both an honor and a responsibility,” says Feedzai CEO and Co-founder Nuno Sebastião. “With tens of billions of transactions expected across the eurozone, success depends on AI that can adapt as quickly as fraud evolves. Our role is to provide the intelligence that keeps even the most sophisticated fraud out, ensuring trust in every digital euro transaction from day one.”

Feedzai detects fraud risk through behavior analysis, transaction history monitoring and device data.

The company also just announced a $75 million investment round at a $2 billion valuation.

G+D notes the digital euro is expected to enable direct peer-to-peer payments without the involvement of a third party, like cash is in the physical world. The estimated value of its component is €220.7 million, with a cap of €662.1 million.

The contracts are for 4 years, but could be extended to 15.

The ECB brought in experts in digital identity and authentication to help establish the rules for the digital euro in 2023, but has committed to issue digital euros only after the Digital Euro Regulation has been adopted.

Article Topics

central bank digital currency (CBDC)  |  cryptocurrency  |  digital euro  |  Fabrick  |  Feedzai  |  financial services  |  Giesecke & Devrient (G+D)  |  Nexi Group