Austrian Cooperative Association: New start with strong managers!

Austrian Cooperative Association: New start with strong managers!

On July 14, 2025, the Austrian Cooperative Association (ÖGV) announced new appointments in two key positions. Enikö Saurer-Kiss will take over the management of the newly created legal and advocacy department. Her responsibilities include legal expertise at national and international levels, particularly in the areas of cooperative law and banking legislation and regulation. Previously, she worked in the legal department at a company run by the City of Vienna as well as in the financial market supervision and at renowned law firms, as ots.at reports.

Bernadette Gierlinger has been appointed as the new head of the service area for the Volksbanks and their associated cooperatives. She is responsible for central ÖGV services, which affect around 500,000 cooperative members. Her focus is on promoting digital innovations. Before her current position, Gierlinger was section head in the Ministry of Economic Affairs and held senior positions in the Ministry of Finance and at Vamed Engineering.

Strong support and future challenges

Peter Haubner, CEO of the ÖGV, welcomes the new appointments and emphasizes the high level of competence of the new leaders. The ÖGV acts as a service and audit association for Volksbanks and commercial cooperatives in Austria. The association's realignment comes at a time when digital innovations and regulatory challenges are becoming increasingly important.

In this context, an event on the role of digital currencies will take place on the same day. At 6:30 p.m. Gottfried Haber, Deputy Governor of the Austrian National Bank, and Peter Brandner, spokesman for Die Weis[s]e Wirtschaft, begin the welcome. Dirk Niepelt, Professor of Economics at the University of Bern, will shortly afterwards give a keynote speech on the topic “CBDC — macroeconomic or political risks?” hold. This discussion is particularly relevant as the importance of central bank digital currencies (DZBG) increases worldwide.

The importance of digital currencies

The international trend shows increased development and adoption of digital currencies. In recent years, central banks have begun to recognize DZBG as the way forward, combining the advantages of electronic payments with the stability of a central bank. This change is also happening in response to geopolitical changes, such as the sanctions against Russia decided by the G7 countries. The EU and China are working on developing their own DZBG, although with different approaches and stamps of progress. The swp-berlin.org highlights that 134 central banks worldwide are now examining the introduction of digital currencies.

China in particular has made progress with the digital yuan (e-CNY) and has launched pilot projects since 2020. This system aims to replace cash and is interoperable with private payment systems, while Europe is at an advanced stage of development with the digital euro and plans to test launch it at the end of 2025 at the earliest. However, experts fear data protection issues and possible surveillance opportunities that may accompany the introduction of digital currencies.

These challenges make the development of digital currencies not only seen as a technological necessity, but also as a crucial means of securing monetary sovereignty. The coming months and years could therefore be crucial for how the market for digital money develops in Europe and beyond.