Five stories of the week from 14 to 18 September 2026, one thesis and one number. Retail rejects mandatory card acceptance, while a fresh survey shows that customers have long taken it for granted at the till — and two European deadlines start running.
“This week retail declared that nobody needs mandatory card acceptance — and in the same week came the survey in which 72 per cent of customers want to pay by card in a restaurant as a matter of course. The argument has long since stopped being about the card and is about its price.”
Five stories of the week from 7 to 11 September 2026, one thesis and one number. Mandatory card acceptance has become a paper, the EUDI wallet has become a date — and growth in retail has become a smaller average ticket.
“In a single week Germany announced three European rails — a payment obligation including a European scheme, its own identity wallet, Wero at the terminal — and in the same week the ticket that is supposed to run on all of it got smaller.”
Five stories of the week from 31 August to 4 September 2026, one thesis and one number. For everyone who wants to be up to speed on payments and sales in five minutes.
“The most important number of the week appears in no press release: Visa and Mastercard are growing by nine per cent in Europe, girocard by 0.8 per cent, and the German merchant pays the difference.”