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Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

finance.yahoo.com

71–80 of 386 posts

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#71
post #57

[flagged]

EU is very good, most of the time. Besides this GDPR Website thing, usb-c is great, energy standards are great, etc.

GDPR could have been great, if it was actually enforced in the way it was intended. Cookie banners and dark patterns are not actually allowed, but without enforcement, it's basically meaningless.

IMO the biggest issue is that the member states are individually required to set up agencies to police this. This makes perfect sense for local companies, but is meaningless against large entities that operate across the entire EU.

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#72

How does digital euro replace credit cards? That's basically the same as direct debit. It doesn't address the reason why I use credit cards. I use credit cards as a proxy for my bank accounts. I know that my issuing bank will protect me from all fraud so I don't have to worry about losing money if I buy something from a fraudulent merchant. I also know I can do things like chargebacks if I have to. None of this is ad…

In EU most people use direct debit. The term "credit card" is almost synonymous with debit. Chargebacks theoretically exists but they are more complicated, I don't know anyone who ever did that.

Maybe in the past, but nowadays you can call your bank for a charge back or you have an option in the banking apps

I do have to say though, that with customer protection laws we have it has never happened to hear about a friend getting a charge back from the bank, usually you go to the seller first (or the platform if you got scammed) and you get refunded there

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#73
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A vast majority of card transactions in the EU are done via debit card. Credit card accounts for only around 25% vs debit. And the only place I've swiped my card was once, in the US, about 15 years ago.

> Credit card accounts for only around 25% If this is true then what will this new "digital Euro" change about the reliance on US credit cards? It seems that the 25% of people that are swiping US credit cards are doing it for the convenience and benefits of using a credit card. Will this digital euro change that?

Debit cards usually also use the Mastercard or Visa payment networks.

Even though I and the supermarket I go to are both part of SEPA and I can issue a bank transfer that will clear ~instantly, today cashless payments still involve EMV for various reasons.

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In EU most people use direct debit. The term "credit card" is almost synonymous with debit. Chargebacks theoretically exists but they are more complicated, I don't know anyone who ever did that.

How do you deal with fraud and people cleaning out your bank account money rather than OPM of a credit card company? Just have enough spare cash for a burner checking account and wait for the fraud reversal? In the US you'll almost always get your money back if someone defrauds your debit card but you could be in for a painful time if you depend on the money in that checking account until it gets fixed.

Banks suck it up, but fraud is likely a lot less prevalent because 3D Secure is mandatory for online transactions and chip and PIN were ubiquitous way before the US seemed to have started using it.

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In EU most people use direct debit. The term "credit card" is almost synonymous with debit. Chargebacks theoretically exists but they are more complicated, I don't know anyone who ever did that.

How do you deal with fraud and people cleaning out your bank account money rather than OPM of a credit card company? Just have enough spare cash for a burner checking account and wait for the fraud reversal? In the US you'll almost always get your money back if someone defrauds your debit card but you could be in for a painful time if you depend on the money in that checking account until it gets fixed.

2FA on online transactions, secure PIN authentication for in-person purchases.

These reduce the level of fraud, and the banks cover the rest.

The basic stuff (online shop not delivering, going bankrupt etc) are covered for debit cards in a similar way as credit cards in other countries.

I've never had a fraudulent transaction myself, and it's over 20 years since I first had a debit card — with a chip and PIN.

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#76
post #4

This seems different than a credit card account though? I buy everything with my credit cards because I don't want to swipe my bank card at random merchants.

it's about the payment processors, not the card type, though the article makes it confusing by mentioning credit cards as it's really not about that at all

https://www.ecb.europa.eu/euro/digital_euro/faqs/html/ecb.fa...

Read the FAQ, it's about no longer relying on US payment processors for handling transactions in a different country that may not support your country's payment system

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#77
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A vast majority of card transactions in the EU are done via debit card. Credit card accounts for only around 25% vs debit. And the only place I've swiped my card was once, in the US, about 15 years ago.

> Credit card accounts for only around 25% If this is true then what will this new "digital Euro" change about the reliance on US credit cards? It seems that the 25% of people that are swiping US credit cards are doing it for the convenience and benefits of using a credit card. Will this digital euro change that?

Debit cards are also mostly visa/mastercard.

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#78
post #44

I hope that they don't fall into the same trap that a lot of EU projects fall in to: only solving one problem. My VISA card is not only a convenient payment method, it also forces ATM operators to give me cash without any extra fees. In Germany the EC card used to be THE way of paying with a card but you had to go to the ATMs of your bank, otherwise there would be sometimes pretty ridiculous fees. The kicker was that…

Try buying something with your card that VISA or the US government doesn’t like.

I'm rooting for the EU.

Re: Digital euro clears key hurdle as EU seeks to break free from U.S. credit cards

#79

How does digital euro replace credit cards? That's basically the same as direct debit. It doesn't address the reason why I use credit cards. I use credit cards as a proxy for my bank accounts. I know that my issuing bank will protect me from all fraud so I don't have to worry about losing money if I buy something from a fraudulent merchant. I also know I can do things like chargebacks if I have to. None of this is ad…

For a lot of Americans the credit card system is another tax on being poor:

People with stable jobs and good credit qualify for no-fee credit cards with rewards / cashback. As a consumer you benefit financially from having a credit card. Those elsewhere in the thread worried about "debt" - you just set to auto-withdrawl the entire balance of the card every month from your bank account. Now you have free money. I can't think of a reason not to take advantage of this system in some way.

But people with unstable jobs and poor credit help subsidize these "higher-end" credit cards when they pay high interest rates on their because they missed payments or hold a balance over multiple months. For those people credit cards could help with monthly cashflow issues but are essentially a scam and not much better than payday loans.

Yet another system that American consumers are kind of forced to participate in that's a sort of tragedy of the commons (high-reward cards wouldn't exist without the exploitation of other people not savvy enough to avoid high interest and fees)

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