The payer couldn't care less about how much the store pays for the transaction. He or she just wants to tap with their phone, and the default here are Visa/MC cards. In addition to the transaction price not being an argument for the payer, Wero also afaik does not have as much consumer protection as (certainly some) credit cards offer. I also bet the average person doesn't understand or care about the whole political dispute either. Again, they just want to pay easily and safely.
I don't think Wero can "win" this from just the merchants side. It's got to be better for the customer's side.
In addition, this only starts in 13 countries. There are 27 EU members. So there is a lot of big ambitions but not followed by actions. Which is what we are sadly used to.
So when I from Slovakia want to buy something in a French eshop, I'm out of luck. And when on a vacation, can't use this system either, while a French person on a vacation in Slovakia can't use it either. My guess is people will mostly continue to use credit/debit cards.
The whole SEPA area has instant SEPA payments. You can stick that into QRs or whatever. Some merchants take payments by SEPA, instant or not, but we need something else if we want to replace both online and in-person card payments throughout the whole EU, and at this point I doubt the Wero will be the replacement.
"Hey buddy, I give you a tiny tiny discount if you pay without fraud protection..."
I mean, some places do that. But for the consumer there is no advantage. It's probably fine at cafés, restaurants and such. But why would you as a consumer want it for any more important purchase? As you mention.
Yes I think the article is vastly overstating the importance of this payment system, but do not underestimate the importance of the sentiment behind it.
The US is done as a global power, all their soft influence is gone, and the EU sees them as an adversary now.
will depend on how it's implemented, you could end up paying via a QR code, contact less NFC, a phone number, the web. I think it could open up a lot of innovation