The paper examines the divergences in approaches to developing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) between the EU and the US, with a focus on political and regulatory aspects. The ECB is systematically developing a digital euro project as an instrument to strengthen the monetary sovereignty and strategic autonomy of the euro area payment system. In contrast, the Fed maintains a cautious, analytical approach, conditioning each step on broad political and legislative consensus. The central axis of this paper is the opposition between the proactive European institutional strategy and the explicitly negative political stance of the current US President, Donald Trump, who in 2025 signed an executive order prohibiting any CBDC-related activity within the US. The analysis reveals that differences in approach are rooted in both regulatory practice and policy conceptions, as well as in varying understandings of the role of money and monetary authorities within the contemporary social context.
