Europe has advanced toward declaring financial independence from the United States—and strengthening its grip on Europeans’ financial lives. On Tuesday, the European Central Bank selected 36 banks and payment companies to participate in a large-scale test of the digital euro.

• The 12-month pilot, scheduled to begin in the second half of 2027, will use a beta version of the digital euro that lacks legal currency status. Its purpose is to refine the design and user experience of the digital euro before a potential eurozone-wide launch in 2029.

The digital euro is being designed to provide people with a simple, free and secure way to make instant payments anywhere in the eurozone. But it’s more, as ecb chief economist Philip Lane has emphasized:

The digital euro is not just about modernizing our monetary system. It is about ensuring that Europe controls its monetary and financial destiny against a backdrop of increasing geopolitical fragmentation.

• In other words, without a digital euro, European companies and consumers would continue to rely heavily on major U.S. payment providers such as Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, Apple and Google. With a digital euro, Europeans would be able to declare financial independence from the United States.

But there’s a catch—a big one. This technology comes at a steep price for individual liberty.

• A digital euro would give the European Central Bank and governments far greater control over the economy.
• It would enable authorities to track every transaction in real time, accumulating vast amounts of personal financial data.
• It could also allow governments to directly deposit money into—or confiscate money from—people’s digital wallets, since the ECB would effectively become the ultimate manager of digital savings and payments.

Revelation 17 describes a religious entity that guides an end-time superpower. Revelation 18:3 notes that “the merchants of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her luxury” (nkjv), and Revelation 13:17 warns that no one will be able to buy or sell without complying with this system.

• This prophecy may be pointing toward advanced digital currency technology. After all, you cannot fully control buying and selling with physical cash—but a programmable digital euro makes it possible.

Learn more about what the Bible says about the economic powerhouse rising in Europe in Herbert W. Armstrong’s booklet Who or What Is the Prophetic Beast?