Euro-area banks expect digital assets to become more important to their businesses over the next year, even as they anticipate a negative impact on retail funding, according to the European Central Bank’s October 27 lending survey. It is the ECB’s first dedicated annual survey question on the subject, offering a rare view of how traditional lenders assess cryptoassets, tokenized securities and stablecoins.
The ECB’s official release covers 159 euro-area banks and was conducted from September 21 to October 6. The responses describe the banks’ own experiences and expectations, not observed outflows of customer deposits to cryptocurrencies.
Digital assets gain strategic importance
The ECB reports a net 2% of banks saying digital assets had contributed positively to their business strategy over the previous 12 months. For the next 12 months, the net expectation rises to 12%, while the effect on broader financial conditions during the past year was assessed as neutral.
These are net percentages of survey responses, not a projection that bank revenue will grow by 12%. The ECB groups several technologies under digital assets, including unbacked cryptoassets such as Bitcoin, tokenized traditional financial assets and stablecoins. Consequently, the survey cannot establish which product category will drive individual banks’ investments.
Retail deposit pressure is the key finding
Banks expect digital assets to have a moderately negative influence on their retail funding business. Retail funding, as defined in the survey’s detailed report, includes deposits held by households and non-financial companies.
The answer is not evidence that depositors already withdrew a particular euro amount for stablecoins. Instead, it highlights potential competitive pressure as consumers and businesses gain alternative ways to hold or transfer value. Any future impact will depend on regulation, deposit rates, stablecoin availability and how banks adapt.
Credit conditions were already tightening
Beyond digital assets, the ECB found that 9% more banks tightened than eased lending standards for companies in the third quarter, while demand for company loans fell on a net basis. It also recorded tightening in consumer-credit standards, with interest rates and perceived risks contributing.
These findings provide important macroeconomic context. The digital-assets question appears alongside wider pressures on banks, rather than establishing that cryptocurrencies caused an observed decline in credit or deposits.
What comes next for European banking
Stablecoin settlement, tokenized deposits and digital asset custody could affect how banks compete for customer money, but the ECB’s results mainly show plans and expectations. They do not measure actual market adoption or endorse an individual product.
In a separate development, the European Commission is reviewing practical experience with MiCA and DORA on October 27. BlockBriefing also recently examined corporate stablecoin interest in Japan, another survey that measures attitudes rather than actual implementation.
Primary sources: ECB October 2026 bank lending survey announcement and full survey analysis, released October 27, 2026.