@witcher@digitalcourage.social
Post #1385734
2026-02-11 10:29 UTC
@whynothugo I won't pretend I know much about how Wero works, but I am aware that is based on european bank transfer stuff. I wanted to write something about it, but I barely know anything about the underlying technology and infrastructure.
I tried it once and was extremely underwhelmed. It's just another app that puts arbitrary restrictions on what operating system it is running on, uses a phone number for identification, and shows a QR code for payments. Wero isn't as revolutionary or independent as they themselves and people generally make it out to be, it's more like a 2026 UI on european bank transfers.
What I do care about is making the distinction that the payment cards and services aren't US based anymore but rather based in the EU, which is what I meant previously.
FWIW I've seen people talk about using it without a smartphone in the future, but I'm guessing that's just wishful thinking and not something Wero has communicated as planned. I'd rather an app wasn't necessary in the first place.
Replies (1)
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@whynothugo@fosstodon.org 2026-02-11 16:16
@witcher For online payments, the current Dutch standard (iDEAL) supports paying online without Visa/Mastercard as intermediary, so Wero seems like a strong step down. And using a phone number as an account identifier is so absurd. As if phone number didn't expire or get re-used. We already have IBAN numbers which might be longer, but everybody copy-pastes them anyway. So far they communicate that an app will be necessary and the only choice.