The EU takes matters into its own hands. It’s time to say goodbye to Visa and PayPala

Europe is considering withdrawing American and Chinese payment systems from the EU market. The President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde emphasized that the dominance of Visa, Mastercard, PayPal or Alipay means no control over the key financial infrastructure and exposes Europe to dependence on foreign interests.

European alternative

Lagarde pointed to the need to create a European alternative that would increase the economic and political independence of the Union. In her opinion, this is a “march towards independence”, which must also be covered by payment systems. Own infrastructure would allow you to stop transaction data in Europe and reduce geopolitical risk.

The European payment system can also bring financial benefits. Instead of transferring commissions to foreign companies, funds would remain in the EU, supporting the development of local technologies. Lagarde pointed out that this would be an important step towards deepening economic integration, in parallel with the EU project of capital markets and plans to create a fiscal union.

Polish BLIK

At the technological level, Europe is already taking action. A vero system is created – a pan -European initiative of the largest EU banks. Polish BLIK is also developed, which has the ambition to become a European standard. This is a response to many years of addiction to American and Asian financial service providers.

Lagarde warns that relying on foreign companies can threaten Europe if tensions from the USA or China get worse. Building your own payment channels means not only greater independence, but also an impact on shaping the digital standards of the future.