[jeroenhd]

I don't think it's as big of an issue. China seems to be doing just fine when it comes to payment processing, and it's not the only country that works that way.

From a software freedom perspective, I actually prefer QR codes. The UX of tapping a card is a little better (though it also opens up an avenue for theft) but I think every phone I've held the past ten years has had some way to quickly scan a QR code from the lock screen, even if not every phone made the possibility obvious.

[SideburnsOfDoom]

Yes. Physical cards are probably going away or becoming unusual in the medium term. A "credit card" or "debit card" will still exist, but not usually as a physical piece of plastic.

Instead of tapping or swiping the card, you tap the phone or watch, or scan a QR on your phone and then confirm in the bank app. Both ways seem to have similar useability to me, and an equivalent result. I've done both in different countries, and neither really bothered me. Yes, the tap method has higher potential for petty theft.

[mytailorisrich]

But why would we want to take a step back when we have contactless right now? This makes little sense... It is worse UX and does not work (I think) for quick things like taking the bus or underground.

Again, China has what is has because people had phones but no payment cards, and they don't have "software freedom" either (whatever that means): They are fully bound to the two providers (Alipay and WeChat) which provide accounts to a point now that is much worse that my dependency or Visa or Mastercard here in Europe because most places now do not accept anything else.

What would make sense is for the likes of Wero to find a way to support contactless so people can just tap exactly as they do now. As said by another commenter, this does not require a physical card (and already exists with Apple Pay and Google Pay). Frankly, Wero is a solution looking for a problem at this point in time...