European cities and financial capital: Digital Euro, Eurobonds, European Welfare
Rome, 24 October 2026
Europe’s economic choices directly shape the freedom, security, and well-being of its citizens. Today, with the vast majority of our digital payments tied to foreign systems, the financial lives of Europeans remain vulnerable to external corporate decisions, the unsolicited extraction of data, and geopolitical instability.
For the For The People Foundation, monetary sovereignty is not an abstract concept; it is a fundamental prerequisite for protecting people and democracy. Building a just economic alternative rests on two critical pillars:
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- A Public Digital Infrastructure: The future digital euro must be built as a genuinely public good. A payment system owned by the public and insulated from foreign corporate platforms is essential to safeguarding every citizen’s financial autonomy. However, the current timeline—with the project expected to become operational only by 2029—is dangerously slow in the face of today’s vulnerabilities.
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- Permanent Fiscal Capacity: True monetary sovereignty requires a parallel European fiscal capacity to match. The success of Eurobonds during the pandemic proved that common European investment is possible. These financial instruments must transition from emergency crisis measures into permanent tools to fund public investment and rebuild welfare systems hollowed out by decades of neoliberal policies.
Can the digital euro be forged as a democratically accountable instrument that returns economic power to the people? How can we transform emergency measures into permanent pillars of shared prosperity?
To tackle these critical questions, the For The People Foundation is bringing together citizens, economists, and changemakers in Rome on October 24, 2026, to discuss and shape the monetary and fiscal tools Europe needs for a genuinely alternative and fair economic future.
Conference programme
Doors Open | 9:00
- Opening remarks: Marisa Matias | 10:00 – 10:10
- Monetary sovereignty: the challenge of the digital euro | 10:10 – 12:30
Emiliano Brancaccio, Martina Metzger – In discussion with Elisabetta Piccolotti; chair: Francesco Raparelli - Eurobonds and economic policy | 14:30 – 16:30
Massimo Amato, Francesco Saraceno – In discussion with Isabel Serra; chair: Antoine de Cabanes
- European welfare, digital sovereignty, ecological transition | 17 – 19
Mariana Mortágua, Mario Pianta – In discussion with Nicola Fratoianni; chair: Marisa Matias
- Conclusions: Francesco Raparelli | 19:05