Europe's plan for a central bank digital currency would cap how much digital money each person can hold, which is bad news for anyone who values cash and financial privacy.

• The digital euro is being sold as an add-on, with cash and normal bank accounts still allowed alongside it.
• Running both systems at once looks pointless unless the goal is to phase one out — new global "know your customer" rules could push private banks toward programmable digital money.
• Each person would face a hard limit on how many digital euros they can hold, set by the ECB inside a ceiling agreed through EU politics.
• The stated reason for the cap is to stop everyone pulling money out of private banks at once and causing a bank run.
• Covid showed how fast an excuse to restrict cash can appear, when cash was called dirty and refused in shops.

Outlook: More people are moving back to cash and buying local, but the shift is too small to stop the rollout, especially in cities.