The strategic impact of EUDI Wallets for organizations and ecosystems

EUDI Wallets enable EU-wide high assurance level authentication and access to high-value credentials for natural persons and organizations, among other things. However, the strategic impact of EUDI Wallets lies not in what they intrinsically provide via credentials, but in what they enable on a wider scale.

Wallets represent a foundational shift in how we approach digital trust when designing digital business services, platforms and ecosystems. While some immediate changes are becoming clearer, the wider implications remain under appreciated by many decision-makers.

The focus on "missing business models" for wallets themselves misses the point. EUDI Wallet infrastructure functions as an enabler technology, similar to how the World Wide Web revolutionized business without having a clear commercial model itself. The implementation costs should be evaluated against the new business opportunities they unlock, not as standalone investments.

Impact #1: Raising the Baseline of Digital Trust

EU will be raising the baseline of digital trust between its member states.

What the adoption EUDI Wallets will do first and foremost is, that they raise the baseline of digital trust across EU. This represents a significant evolution from our current fragmented approach, where maturity levels vary between countries and services. Commoditization of digital trust capabilities is extremely important for EU, as the cost and immediate accessibility of higher assurance levels will be within reach for all.

For businesses, this means:

• Elimination of separate contracts for identity verification in different EU jurisdictions

• Standardized mechanisms for customer onboarding that satisfy regulatory requirements

• Reduction in friction for cross-border services while maintaining high security standards

• Minimizing GDPR burden and storing only use case relevant data, instead of honeypotting

EUDI Wallets will fundamentally simplify digital trust landscape, reducing compliance costs while improving customer experience.

Impact #2: Making existing infrastructures more accessible

Payment authentication with EUDI Wallet (EWC concept illustration)

EUDI Wallets won't just enable new services—they will actually make existing business infrastructures more efficient and accessible. Payment rails serve as a prime example of this potential transformation. In the EWC Large Scale Pilot, we saw VISA, Banca Transilvania, BPC and iGrant with support and contributions from Lissi, Fast Ferries, UAegean and Worldline, already use the EUDI Wallet to execute a live payment transaction verification. In EWC, the focus is on EUDIW as an alternative SCA method for

online payments and using EUDIW as a payment wallet, holding payment credentials. The existing infrastructures frameworks remain largely the same, with EUDI Wallets creating new payment initiation and authorization mechanisms.

As EUDI Wallets become usable for authorizing payments, they will make payment infrastructure more accessible while enhancing security. Existing payment systems can leverage the high assurance identification and verification capabilities native to the wallet architecture, reducing fraud while streamlining user experiences.

This creates a win-win scenario where payment service providers, and infrastructures can focus on their core value proposition while outsourcing complex identity challenges to the standardized EUDI framework.

Impact #3: Enabling Data Spaces and Digital Ecosystems

Building new data spaces and digital ecosystems today requires solving complex trust and regulatory challenges before any value can be delivered. EUDI Wallets dramatically change this equation by providing a framework where:

• Endpoints, protocols, and trust frameworks are largely predefined and standardized

• Regulatory hurdles around non-repudiation and cross-border acceptance are addressed

• Clear framework exist to implement industry-specific rulebooks and new credential types

Rather than viewing EUDI Wallets as a regulatory burden, forward-thinking organizations should see it as a new playground for digital ecosystem opportunities.

Wallets are enablers for formation of data spaces and digital ecosystems.

Rather than viewing EUDI Wallets as a regulatory burden, forward-thinking organizations should see it as a new playground for digital ecosystem opportunities. The hard infrastructure work is being done collectively, allowing businesses to focus on creating value rather than solving baseline trust issues. Data spaces and sector-specific ecosystems can leverage existing wallet capabilities rather than building proprietary solutions, dramatically reducing the barrier to entry for participation in these initiatives.

Shift the perspective from compliance to innovation

Organizations should start to think about how they will participate in the EUDI Ecosystem. When working on the wallet strategy, the key question should not be "how to be compliant", but instead "what new possibilities does this enable for our business?". Organizations that make this mental shift will be positioned to capture significant value as the European digital identity landscape transforms.

The more focus you start to put into thinking EUDI Wallets as an enabler rather than a compliance exercise, chances are you will be discovering unexpected opportunities to streamline operations, enter new markets, and create innovative service offerings.

The question isn't whether EUDI Wallets will deliver value—it's whether your organization will be positioned to capture that value when it emerges. How is your organization preparing to leverage the transformative potential of EUDI Wallets beyond basic compliance?

I'd be interested to hear your perspective on where you see the greatest potential for EUDI Wallets to transform your industry or organization.