[bildung]

Because they are usually aren't free in Europe. And it doesn't feel like a new market opening, it usually is just that single shop once every year.

And additional ancedata because I don't know whether that's a US <> Europe thing: Personally, the idea of going into dept for private consumption is completely foreign to me and most people I know, so the idea of a credit card is very unappealing.

Wire transfers OTOH are simple, practically free and fast enough (<1 day inside the country, ~1 day inside of Europe).

[jkyle]

> Personally, the idea of going into dept for private consumption is completely foreign to me and most people I know, so the idea of a credit card is very unappealing.

Though I know many don't follow this rule, I never purchase anything on a credit card I don't have cash for. It's purely for the convenience factor (and the 1-3% discount on all purchases).

I wouldn't pay for one though.

[tommorris]

Here in the UK, one advantage to using a credit card (even if you don't need credit) or a charge card is that the Consumer Credit Act 1974 gives you a whole bunch of extra consumer protections that you wouldn't get if you paid cash or debit card.

The main reason I got a credit card initially was because when I visited the US, nobody understood what a Maestro card was.