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Crypto.Andy (DEV)
Crypto.Andy (DEV)

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🚨 Will European IT Specialists Be Recruited to Build New Payment Systems?

Over the past few weeks, social media has been buzzing with claims that the European Union plans to ban U.S.-based payment platforms like Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal — and that this could open the door for massive tech hiring across Europe to build "replacement systems."

👀 Sounds like a fintech gold rush, right? Not quite.

Here’s what really happened:

🗣 During an April 2 interview, ECB President Christine Lagarde highlighted that many of Europe’s digital payments rely on non-European infrastructure — specifically naming Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, and Alipay.

However, she never called for a ban.
Instead, the message was clear: Europe needs alternatives, not exclusions.

✅ The ECB later clarified:
“We are not advocating for the abandonment of payment systems provided by companies such as Visa, Mastercard, PayPal or Alipay.”

So what’s actually happening?
The Digital Euro is in development as a complement, not a replacement.

The European Payments Initiative (EPI) has launched Wero, a digital wallet platform now available in Belgium, France, and Germany.

These projects may create demand for IT specialists, especially in cybersecurity, backend architecture, blockchain/R&D, and UX for digital wallets — but it’s not a sweeping pivot away from global platforms.

💬 What’s your take? Would you be interested in working on something like a digital euro or open-source EU payment system?

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