he European Central Bank (ECB) released its first progress report on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) on June 24, with a strong emphasis on privacy protection. The ECB has committed to preventing personal transactions from being traced through anonymization, hash functions, and encryption, and payment service providers are not allowed to use consumer financial data without their consent. The report also introduces methods to support offline transactions. A newly established "rule-making group" will submit a draft CBDC technology and regulatory framework by the end of 2024. Privacy remains a major concern for CBDCs, and opposition is growing in the cryptocurrency community.