Digital Identity and how banks can prepare for eIDAS 2.0 regulation

The digital identity of banks’ users will be stored in these wallets, enabling a secure and transparent model for sharing attributes.

Two key dates are particularly important for banks:

• By December 2026: Member States must issue or enable their European Digital Identity Wallets.
• By December 2027: Banks must accept EUDIW for Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) in relevant scenarios.

The new ecosystem introduces digital wallets that enable customers to store verifiable credentials and reuse them for authentication across different use cases. Banks will interact with multiple wallets from public and private providers, reinforcing trust across digital identity and payment transactions. To ensure this trust, the ecosystem relies on trusted lists. These allow participants to verify which wallets and attribute issuers are authorised and trustworthy. The goal is seamless and secure access, online and offline, while giving customers control over their data.

The EUIDW will support a wide range of use cases, including identity verification, authentication, and signatures (e.g., SCA, age verification, e-signatures) across online banking, payments, and in person verification).

In this ecosystem, banks will assume several roles. Firstly, a bank will be a relying party, accepting wallet-based authentication and attestations. Second, a bank can act as an attribute issuer, providing verified attestations such as authentication status today, and potentially financial attributes in the future (e.g. IBAN, proof of revenue) . Third, a bank could issue or operate its own wallet (optional). This journey isn’t about replacing existing systems, but weaving wallet-based verifications into current journeys to deliver frictionless onboarding and secure sign-in.

One concrete use case can be online banking authentication. When accessing the online banking platform, a customer can choose to authenticate using their digital identity wallet. The bank displays a QR code, which the customer scans with their wallet application or, on mobile, enables an app-to-app flow that opens the customer’s digital identity wallet. During the initial setup, the customer explicitly consents to this usage and the bank may issue a verified credential that is securely stored in the wallet. For subsequent logins, authentication becomes faster: the customer scans the QR code, shares the credential from the wallet, and gains access. Behind the scenes, the bank verifies the credential and checks trusted lists to ensure the wallet and attributes are valid. This use case shows how banks will act both as relying parties and attribute issuers, while offering a secure, compliant, and user-controlled authentication experience aligned with eIDAS 2.0.

To prepare for the ecosystem, Worldline is participating in Large Scale Pilots to test wallet-based identities across onboarding, authentication, and payments. These pilots offer early access to use cases and help shape standards.

A key challenge for banks in this new ecosystem is navigating interoperability across multiple wallets while ensuring flexible journeys that work regardless of which wallet a customer uses. Addressing interoperability is essential to help banks prepare for the regulation. In response, Worldline has created the Digital Identity Hub, a hub that handles the heavy lifting of wallet connections, attribute provisioning, and trust-list management. The Hub connects to 27+ wallets and helps you issue attestations and request attestations from others. It preserves privacy by sharing only what is needed with wallets while enabling robust verifications.

The moment to act is now. eIDAS 2.0 and the EUDIW ecosystem are redefining how customers prove who they are and how banks deliver trusted services across Europe. Banks can lead this transformation by defining clear roles, investing in interoperable journeys, and partnering with a capable hub that accelerates time to market. With Worldline as your partner, you can move from strategy to execution and turn regulatory obligations into a competitive advantage.