Wero is a European mobile payment system that replaced Giropay in Germany, Paylib in France,[1] Payconiq in Belgium[2] and Luxembourg, and iDEAL in the Netherlands. The service was launched on 2 July 2024 by the European Payments Initiative.[3] The service competes with PayPal, credit cards and similar services. It started as a real-time payment system in 2024, and from summer 2025 extended online payment functions were added on a step-by-step basis.
 | |
Type of site | Mobile payment |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | De Lignestraat 13, 1000 Brussels, Belgium |
| Area served | Western Europe |
| Owner | EPI Company SE |
| URL | wero-wallet |
| Launched | 2024 |
| Native client(s) on | iOS, Android |
The name is a portmanteau made up of the English personal pronoun we and the name of the European Union's common currency, the Euro, but is also based on the Italian word vero, meaning true.[4]
History
editBackground EPI project
editThe aim of EPI's project is to achieve greater independence from the market power of American payment service providers. According to the management consultancy Capco, EPI's market entry may come too late for many, but the train has "not yet completely left the station, but is already in motion".[5] The Center for Financial Studies believes that the end of 2021 will be the "last opportunity for Europe to establish a payment system that can keep up with global competition" (especially against US competitors). During 2020 and 2021 several attempts were made to initiate the creation of a European based payment system that could rival card based payment solutions of Visa and Mastercard.
2022
editAfter 20 banks from Poland, Spain, Germany and Finland had withdrawn from the project end of 2021, the remaining 13 banks pivoted the project towards a payment solution based on a digital wallet.[6]
EPI announced it wanted to start the "digital wallet" with mobile-to-mobile payments in Belgium, Germany and France. By offering its own app, according to the provider, almost all bank customers in these countries will most likely be able to use Wero. It should become comparable to Twint (Switzerland) and MobilePay (Denmark).
2023
editOn 25 April, EPI announced that its shareholders confirmed the development (and launch) of the wallet based payment solution.[7] Several European institutions, among them European Central Bank, welcomed the initiative.[8]
On 21 September 2023, EPI selected the name Wero for its upcoming payment service.[9]
In December 2023, EPI launched a pilot operation between German Sparkasse Elbe-Elster and the French Banque Populaire, based on the fully-developed SCT-Inst SEPA payment solution.
2024
edit![Text: 10 Sekunden reichen nicht, um einen Bembel zu leeren. Aber mit Wero kannst du in 10 Sekunden von Konto zu Konto Geld senden und empfangen. (Translation: 10 seconds is not enough to empty a bembel. But with Wero you can send and receive money from account to account in 10 seconds). [Illustration of two phones with a rocket flying between them, one phone with the balance of minus 20€ and the other 20€ plus, logo of Wero, logos of supported banks, and download badges for Google Play and Apple App Store]](/wiki/File:Wero-ffm-hbf.jpg)
On 2 July 2024, Wero was launched in Germany, with two German banks going live with the service.[3] On 30 September 2024, Wero was launched in France.[10] On 19 November 2024, Wero was launched in Belgium.[11] As of November 2024, the service counts 14 million users and 8 million transactions were made.[12]
In December 2024, a first Wero e-commerce payment transaction was performed in a pilot setting.[13] The next countries to follow will be Luxembourg and the Netherlands.[14]
2025
editIn February 2025, the German branch of Italian payment service provider Nexi announced that it signed a contract with EPI that would allow its merchants to accept Wero for online commerce.[15] In May 2025, Canadian payment service provider Nuvei also announced that its clients would be able to use Wero for e-commerce businesses. [16] In June 2025, British fintech company Revolut joined the EPI and would provide Wero to its clients[17], while French payment service providers Worldline announced that it would enable its merchants to use Wero in online commerce, starting in summer 2025 in Germany.[18]
Product features
editP2P Contact list payments
editA user can associate a phone number to their bank account, with a maximum of three phone numbers per bank account. A person can make a bank transfer to another person's bank account, using their phone number instead of their IBAN.
P2P Payment request
editA user can send a payment request to a person, by selecting the bankaccount, specifying the requested amount in Euros and selecting a person that should receive the payment request. The person receiving an payment request is notified of an incoming payment request. The person can decline the payment request. The person can also accept the payment request by selecting the bank account and approving the payment. If the person does not respond, a payment request expires after 30 days.
P2P Wero QR codes generation
editA user can create a QR code, by selecting the bank account and specifying the requested amount in Euros. A person can make a bank transfer by scanning the QR code, selecting their bank account and approving the transaction.
Future planned features
editEPI announced in July 2024, that it will extend Wero's offering to online and mobile shopping payments (in 2025) and then NFC enabled point-of-sale payments (2026). An additional comprehensive range of transaction types is planned to be supported later, including one-off payments, subscriptions, installments, payments upon delivery and reservations. Additionally, value-added services will be incorporated into the solution over time, including responsible "Buy Now, Pay Later" (BNPL) financing, digital identity features and integration of merchant loyalty programmes.[7]
Current supported banks
edit| Bank name | Country | Begin of support |
|---|---|---|
| Belfius | Belgium | 2024-09-26[11] |
| ING Belgium | Belgium | 2024-11-19[11] |
| BNP Paribas | France | 2024-10-24[10] |
| BNP Paribas Fortis (Fintro, Hello Bank! Belgium) | Belgium | 2024-11-06[11] |
| Groupe BPCE | France | 2024-10-02[10] |
| Crédit Agricole | France | 2024-09-26[10] |
| Crédit Mutuel | France | 2024-11-06[10] |
| KBC (CBC, KBC Brussels) | Belgium | 2024-07-26[11] |
| La Banque Postale | France | 2024-10-28[10] |
| Postbank | Germany | 2024-10-31[19] |
| Hello bank! | France | 2024-10-02[10] |
| PSD Bank | Germany | 2024-09-30[20] |
| Société Générale | France | 2024-10-24[10] |
| Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe | Germany | 2024-07-02[3] |
| Volksbanken Raiffeisenbanken (DZ Bank, Sparda-Bank) | Germany | 2024-07-02[3] |
Other countries
editThe majority of participating banks in France have launched Wero by the end of 2024, with La Banque postale using the EPI app instead of its own.
Other banks that want to offer the service as of September 2024 are ING (Netherlands) and the payment service providers Worldline (France) and Nexi (Italy). Other banks and service providers are set to follow.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Teng, Tina (30 September 2024). "Wero set to become Europe's first unified payment solution". euronews. Retrieved 27 November 2024.
- ^ "Wero : nouveau système de paiement lancé en Belgique". TestAchats (in French). 12 September 2024. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
- ^ a b c d "EPI launches Wero, its innovative digital payment wallet in Germany". EPI Company SE. 2 July 2024.
- ^ Atzler, Elisabeth (7 September 2023). "Neuer europäischer Zahlungsdienst soll 'Wero' heißen". Handelsblatt. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
- ^ Laura Eßlinger (22 September 2023). "Wero: Europas Bezahldienst hat jetzt einen Namen – und Verspätung". Capital..
- ^ Benton, Philip (25 March 2022). "European Payments Initiative project pivots after 20 banks depart". Omdia. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
- ^ a b "EPI Company announces acquisitions, additional shareholders and the coming launch of its new instant payment solution". EPI Company SE. 25 April 2023. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023.
- ^ "ECB welcomes the EPI's progress on building a European payment solution". European Central Bank. 25 April 2023.
- ^ "EPI selects "Wero" as commercial name for its innovative digital wallet". EPI Company SE. 21 September 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "EPI launches Wero, its European digital payment wallet in France". EPI Company SE. 30 September 2024.
- ^ a b c d e "EPI launches Wero, its innovative digital payment wallet in Belgium". EPI Company SE. 19 November 2024.
- ^ "Epi Company | Wero shows first results: Promise of fast, secure and…". EPI Company SE. 12 November 2024. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
- ^ "Ein Meilenstein für den FCK und die europäische Zahlungsinnovation". 1. FC Kaiserslautern (in German). 17 December 2024.
- ^ "Wero: Shaping the future of European payments". 24 December 2024.
- ^ "Nexi becomes Wero acquirer, in partnership with Computop". 24 February 2025.
- ^ "Nexi becomes Wero acquirer, in partnership with ComputopNuvei Joins the European Payments Initiative to Launch Wero for Ecommerce". 15 May 2025.
- ^ "Revolut joins the European Payments Initiative to bring Wero to millions of new customers this summer". 3 June 2025.
- ^ "Worldline initiates the launch of Wero in ecommerce starting this summer". 4 June 2025.
- ^ Mahlmeister, Frank (1 October 2024). "EPI – Postbank startet Wero Ende Oktober". DER PLATOW Brief (in German).
- ^ "Wero". PSD Bank RheinNeckarSaar eG (in German). Retrieved 1 November 2024.