Barriers are being placed on millions of bank customers

Mastercard, the company behind many credit and giro cards, will soon be discontinuing the Maestro payment service. As a result, millions of giro cards from German banks are practically useless for making payments abroad. But the consequences could go further.

Maestro’s swan song has begun. That Payment system will be discontinued for Europe in mid-2023. The operator Mastercard has officially confirmed this. Banks in Germany can then no longer issue giro cards with the familiar logo (source: Financial scene).

Millions of consumers affected: bank cards lose Maestro access

There is much more to the obvious cosmetic change, however: Millions of German giro cards and the associated bank accounts use Maestro for contactless payments abroad or to be able to withdraw money from machines with the Maestro license plate when traveling internationally. That will soon be over.

However, the end for Maestro will drag on: Initially, from mid-2023, newly issued cards will no longer be able to access the payment system. Previously issued cards remain valid, so Maestro still operated until at least 2027 would have to be, even if the expiry date is approaching for the most recent cards.

According to the financial scene, the end will come sooner rather than later, and from 2023 a rapid erosion is expected for everyone who supports payments via Maestro. Mastercard will probably not be left alone with the decision. The global market is only shared with one other, comparably large provider: Visa. Their competing product According to the expert opinion, V-Pay should also no longer be operated for much longer.

You also need the bank card for online banking – depending on the selected TAN procedure. You can find out which ones are available in the Video:

Maestro-Aus: What does it mean for German bank customers?

The first consequence of Mastercard’s decision for customers of German banks would be the restrictions in international payment transactions – unless the banks and financial service providers concerned find another solution beforehand. A overarching European competitor product to V-Pay and Maestro would be conceivable, but is considered costly.

From Mastercard’s perspective, there would be a simple solution: Instead of granting bank customers access to international payment systems through so-called co-badging with their banks’ cards, consumers would have one own debit card directly from Maestro require.

Officially, Mastercard is taking this step because “the world continues to change rapidly from the physical to the digital world”. Consumer needs and behavior would change. The company website still says: “Mastercard itself does not issue cards.” That could change soon.