[stedaniels]

I'm mildly curious as to where you live? I thought the UK was one of the first countries to get EMV/Chip and Pin. I'm 32 and I had a swipe before a Chip and Pin card. The earliest worldwide public trials and rollouts look to be ~ 2003, that would mean you didn't have a bank account with a card until you were ~21? Is that normal where you come from? I think I had my first swipe ~16, second swipe ~18, the bank switched me to Chip and Pin roughly a year later if my memory serves... which it often doesn't ;-)

[seszett]

Not OP, but I'm 32, French, and I never even saw my parents use a swipe card. My earliest memories of credit cards are chip and pin (and I still remember their code). Apparently this started in 1992 here, though I guess it wasn't technically "credit cards" but the national debit cards system.

[Nursie]

IIRC France had an earlier chip system called something like "B0 Prime" or "B Zero Prime". It predates the EMV cards that came in mid-late 90s.

[roel_v]

"though I guess it wasn't technically "credit cards" but the national debit cards system"

Well yeah sure, but we're talking credit cards here. Either way, many parts of Europe used swipe-style debit cards (with pin) until a few years ago; I'm pretty sure I used them in France too, < 10 years ago (although I can't remember for sure).

[marcv81]

I was not trying to talk other countries down. For what it's worth you can't survive in France without a checkbook: it's the only way to pay for some transactions. Sad.

Also the debit cards we're talking about do both credit and debit. Not sure they disqualify.

[dzhiurgis]

I don't think credit cards are widely used outside US - most use debit.

[marcv81]

Like a few others who replied, I grew up in France. Technically debit cards indeed. Not sure card which do exclusively credit are a thing there.

[smcl]

Maybe Australia or NZ - they're a bit quicker to roll out new-ish card tech than UK I think

[ajdlinux]

I'm a 24 year old Australian and I certainly knew swipe cards when I got my first bank account...