Market Infrastructure Experts (offline technology) - Digital Euro Project

You will be part of the Directorate Digital Euro, which is part of the ECB’s Directorate General Market Infrastructure and Payments. Our Directorate is responsible for leading the digital euro project. It supports the digital euro governance bodies in steering, controlling and monitoring the project, and it oversees all project workstreams managing the scope, budget and resources approved by the Governing Council. For more information about the digital euro project, please visit the hub page on the ECB’s website. In your role as Market Infrastructure Expert, you will be part of the Offline Team of about eight members of staff, which is responsible for (i) refining and prioritising offline digital euro use cases and aligning them with policy, risk, privacy and inclusion objectives; and (ii) supporting and steering the pilot and technical workstreams by coordinating with original equipment manufacturers and other stakeholders and feeding back lessons learned into the Rulebook and the digital euro app design. The ECB is an inclusive employer and we strive to reflect the diversity of the population we serve. We encourage you to apply irrespective of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, race, religious beliefs, sexual orientation or other characteristics.

Your role As a Market Infrastructure Expert, you will:

• build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders (e.g. consumer organisations, merchants, payment service providers, device manufacturers and standardisation bodies) to understand and integrate their needs and constraints for offline payments into the project;
• define and refine offline payment use cases (e.g. peer-to-peer and consumer-to-merchant) with clear constraints such as transaction limits, usage caps and risk mitigation measures;
• ensure offline use cases incorporate strong privacy protections (cash-like where possible) while meeting regulatory requirements. Define safeguards against risks such as double spending, fraud and misuse;
• develop offline payment scenarios to enhance system resilience during network outages or disasters and ensure the continuity of basic payments when online infrastructure is unavailable;
• support offline payment pilots, gather feedback from users and stakeholders, and translate findings into refined requirements. Collaborate with usability, security and technical experts to validate solutions;
• draft offline-specific rules and requirements (e.g. transaction limits, dispute handling and synchronisation behaviour) for inclusion in the Rulebook, ensuring alignment with the overall digital euro framework;
• promote offline payment solutions that support financial inclusion and integrate accessibility considerations into user journeys and device interactions for users with limited connectivity, low digital literacy or disabilities.

The position offers you excellent opportunities to be part of the team tasked with developing the most innovative functionality for digital payments. You will be part of a multicultural team that strives for continuous innovation to make a positive impact on the lives of European citizens. We actively support professional development for our staff. Besides learning opportunities such as training and mentoring, we encourage and support horizontal mobility after some years in the same position.

Do you have experience in SAFe?, Do you have a Master’s degree?, * a master’s degree or equivalent in a STEM subject (science, technology, engineering or mathematics) or another relevant field (see How you can join us on our website for details on degree equivalences);

• in addition to the above, a minimum of four years’ professional experience specialising in secure elements, applied cryptography or a security-related domain;
• proven analytical skills and experience in drafting concise and clear notes and reports, and experience in presenting complex topics adapted to different audiences;
• an advanced (C1) command of English and an intermediate (B1) command of at least one other official language of the EU, according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Desired:

• experience in developing an offline, or partially offline, payment solution;
• technical knowledge of the standards applicable to payments, payment schemes or solutions in the bank-to-consumer domain;
• experience with SAFe or agile project management approaches; experience in successfully launching a product on the market.

You engage collaboratively with others. You pursue team goals and learn willingly from other people’s diverse perspectives. You signal any need for change by explaining it and proposing alternative solutions. You analyse complex information effectively and can evaluate different views to arrive at solutions. You know and anticipate stakeholder needs. You are motivated to be part of our team and to develop and use your skills and competencies to achieve the aims of this position.