At this point, I am firmly of the opinion that we need a single, global standard for online payments that is just an electronic equivalent of cash or a direct b

At this point, I am firmly of the opinion that we need a single, global standard for online payments that is just an electronic equivalent of cash or a direct bank transfer. Solid authentication of the parties. Explicit authorisation of each transaction or series of transactions to be performed. No other strings attached for anyone just because you're transferring money; that's what contracts are for. No arbitrary gatekeeping or labyrinthine terms for buyers and sellers, dictated by intermediaries in their own interests. No spying on who is paying for what and selling that data on to some shady broker for an extra cut. Ideally, the whole thing should be run as a public service in each country, at cost, with no intermediaries at all, in the same way countries operate their primary currencies as a public benefit that is beyond the control of any commercial entity. If not, then at least heavily regulated with a similar outcome. And make it illegal for any commercial entity offering goods or services for sale to require the use of some other payment method without also offering this one with at least the same prominence, so you can use something like an escrow service with a refund mechanism if you want to, but only if both parties genuinely agree to the terms. With the increasing prevalence of online shopping, the increasing importance of reliable and efficient international money transfer to the global economy, and the seemingly never-ending ways the financial services industry can mess around both senders and receivers of money when all they wanted to do was send $X from A to B, we needed something like that long ago, but better late than never.