Digital cash is moving from pilots into regulated use. In Luxembourg, firms can issue it, hold it and move it under one regulator.
MiCAR defines two forms of stablecoin: e-money tokens (EMTs), which reference a single currency and can be issued only by banks and e-money institutions, and asset-referenced tokens (ARTs), which reference other assets or a combination of currencies. Luxembourg offers a single, trusted base for both. The Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) oversees token issuers, crypto-asset service providers and payment firms alike, giving companies building digital cash infrastructure one point of contact from launch to cross-border distribution. Several euro e-money tokens are already issued from Luxembourg.
What can you do from Luxembourg?
1. Issue and manage stablecoins (EMTs/ARTs) under MiCA supervision
2. Issue tokenised deposits - bank deposits recorded on a distributed ledger, which remain the remit of credit institutions and under banking law
3. Provide on-chain settlement solutions linking tokenised money to securities and fund transactions
4. Combine CASP and EMI permissions for integrated payment and crypto services under a single supervisor
5. Access Europe's financial sector and passport services across all 27 EU member states
Why Luxembourg for digital cash?
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1. Proven payments and e-money expertise
Luxembourg has decades of experience supervising global payment and e-money institutions, from PayPal to Alipay and Amazon Payments. That same expertise now underpins its approach to stablecoins and tokenised deposits, giving issuers a regulator who already understands how to connect digital assets with traditional financial rails
2. A single, clear supervisory point
The CSSF acts as Luxembourg’s National Competent Authority for MiCAR, overseeing both EMT/ART issuance and CASP services. Its dedicated digital assets team provides structured pre-application dialogue and practical guidance for firms launching regulated tokens, combining speed with supervisory depth and trusted oversight.
3. Legal certainty across models
Every form of digital cash has a defined legal home in Luxembourg. Stablecoins fall under MiCAR, with its rules on reserves, disclosure and redemption at par. Tokenised deposits remain bank deposits, governed by banking law. And since 2019, Luxembourg’s Blockchain Laws have given securities issued and held on distributed ledgers the same legal standing as their traditional equivalents, so digital cash can settle tokenised bonds and fund units on a recognised legal footing.
4. Deep integration with capital markets
Settlement of tokenised assets in central bank money is now live, and Luxembourg-based institutions are among its first users. The Eurosystem launched Pontes in September 2026, connecting distributed-ledger platforms to its high-value payment system, TARGET. Weeks later, the Luxembourg-based European Stability Mechanism settled a €1 billion digitally native bond through Pontes, with Clearstream operating the DLT infrastructure. Firms building digital cash in Luxembourg work alongside the issuers and market infrastructure already putting it to use.
What's happening in practice
Getting started
Speak with the CSSF’s Digital Assets and Payments team for early guidance on MiCA, EMT, and tokenised-deposit models. If you already operate under Luxembourg’s payment or e-money licence, the same supervisory channel can oversee your digital-cash activity.
