 New technologies have enabled the emergence of crypto assets, but what are they? As a central bank of the euro, we are interested in these developments and the impact on our financial system. One of our key objectives is to ensure that payments are made safely and efficiently across the euro area. For these reasons, we are looking at the benefits, but also assessing the risks. Crypto assets use new technologies to enable peer-to-peer transactions, but they are not backed by anything or anyone to preserve their value. In fact, they have high volatility, which makes them largely unfit for day-to-day payments. What are known as stablecoins could be a game-changer if they play it by the rules. The technology is there and keeps evolving, opening up new possibilities including for central banks. We are getting ready by updating our policies, testing new technologies, and fostering an innovative payments market for the euro.