Okay,hereS a verification and correction of the provided text,aiming for accuracy and up-to-date details.I’ll highlight changes and provide explanations. I will also provide a summary at the end.
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## Revised Text with Verifications & Corrections
European Union industry chief Thierry breton is pushing for a unified European payment system to reduce reliance on U.S. giants Visa and Mastercard, warning of the need for “action urgently,” she added.
Visa and Mastercard account for roughly 80% of Eurozone card transactions, according to data from the European Central Bank (ECB).
Thirteen European Union countries currently lack a national option to these American companies, and the usage of existing domestic programs is declining.
The decreasing use of cash has raised concerns among EU officials about the potential for American payment companies to leverage their position during geopolitical tensions.
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“Deep integration created dependencies that coudl be abused when not all partners were allies,” Mario Draghi, former ECB president, said in a recent speech. “Interdependence, onc seen as a source of mutual restraint, became a source of leverage and control.”
The European Payments Initiative (EPI) launched Wero in 2024,an alternative to Apple Pay,initially available to 48.5 million users in Belgium,france,and Germany. The programme aims to expand to online and in-store payments by 2027.
Weimert told the FT that banks and merchants are increasingly aware of the need for a cross-border European payments network, noting that the “geopolitical context” has made it a more pressing issue.
As previously reported, there is ongoing debate in Europe regarding the optimal response to the dominance of American payment companies. The European Central Bank (ECB) has advocated for the digital euro as a means to enhance “our freedom, autonomy and security,” as stated by ECB executive board member Piero Cipollone in September.
However, the EPI contends that the current proposed design of a digital euro largely overlaps with existing private sector payment solutions, without offering considerable added