As the only Nordic nation that transacts with the Euro, the Bank of Finland participates actively in the digital euro development. The ECB started working on the Digital Euro back in 2021 and is in the exploration phase currently.
Finland was possibly the first country in the world to launch CBDC. The Avant card for offline payment was developed in the 1990s by the Bank of Finland. The Avant card and system was designed for a world with declining cash usage and increasing commercial transactions in digital environments. The Avant card could be used for both offline and online payments in a phone booth, public transport, kiosks, shops and ecommerce. The idea never gained wide acceptance, so the Bank of Finland sold its Avant card business.