4 ms·

It can still work in developing countries where the cost of switching is lower due to the "newer" things not being present yet. Think of fiber lines being laid

It can still work in developing countries where the cost of switching is lower due to the "newer" things not being present yet. Think of fiber lines being laid out first in some areas, so they have a better connectivity than some first-world places. Same with payment systems. China and India are arguably a lot better with payments because they simply skipped the credit card phase. You can literally pay a street vendor in India through a QR code.

sofixa 2y ago
> China and India are arguably a lot better with payments because they simply skipped the credit card phase. You can literally pay a street vendor in India through a QR code. I'm not sure I'd say they're "a lot better". Better than the ridiculous US signing a paper bill, yes, but the US is not the standard, they're decades behind it. They use paper cheques ffs! In most of the EU contactless payments that work by card or phone over NFC with well supported/integrated app that work all the same regardless of your bank or exact method of payment sounds much better to me than needing a separate app for the payment provider in question, having to open it to scan a QR code. My current payment flow is I take out my phone, unlock it, tap; or if I don't have my phone / battery is dead, I take out my card, tap it. Having to have a phone, unlock, open a specific app, scan a QR code (muck with light, angle, focus, etc.) and then fill payment details sounds much worse UX.
- ricardobayes 2y ago
  I wasn't necessarily talking about the US, although I see how you can come to that conclusion. I'm more talking about some other, very developed countries like Germany, in which most vendors don't even accept "normal" debit/credit cards. It's mostly cash only, or a "girocard" which is a German domestic card type. In other countries, I agree that NFC payments made it simpler, although moving money between B2C users is still a bit lacking.
- olalonde 2y ago
  Still can't do peer to peer pay transfers, still need a bank account, still need to apply for a physical card, still need to pay high transaction fees, still need to fill out credit card information when shopping online, no way to list who is authorized to charge your card and revoke their access, still need a costly terminal to accept payments, etc. Having used both systems, I'd say WeChat and Alipay's payment systems are vastly superior to credit cards in terms of UX.
  - sofixa 2y ago
    You're still comparing with the American banking system, not the EU which I was talking about. > Still can't do peer to peer pay transfers SEPA is free and easy to use. > still need a bank account, still need to apply for a physical card Both of which can be had for free. > still need to pay high transaction fees What high transaction fees? 0.2% isn't high for all the infrastructure involved. > no way to list who is authorized to charge your card Yep, but authorizations online require MFA, so that's really not a big problem. > still need a costly terminal to accept payments Nope, there a bunch of startups such as SumUp with very affordable terminals.
    - rainson 2y ago
      > [...] than needing a separate app for the payment provider in question, having to open it to scan a QR code. At least for WeChat/Alipay, the apps integrate with banks. You can also provide your own QR code for payment which gets scanned. The flow is then unlock your phone, show the QR code. There also isn't a step to fill payment details (unless you are comparing to some imaginary payment system). > much worse UX Presenting a QR code, opening a scanner, or bringing out the NFC payment UI are all single step operations. (unless you want to manually open the apple wallet app instead of using the double click function, for example.) I don't think you are being fair here. NFC payment has its own problems: you have to line up the devices, which means moving very close to the payment terminal. Often different terminals have different areas to line up. The scanning flow is superior as there is much greater margin of error in positioning and you can pay from a greater distance. If you bring a bunch of cards instead of having a charged phone, that's a preference but not a UX improvement. > SEPA is free and easy to use. Yes, and you will have to have a phone, unlock, open a specific app, fill in payment details.
      - olalonde 2y ago
        > The scanning flow is superior as there is much greater margin of error in positioning and you can pay from a greater distance. True. Some giant screens (e.g. in clubs) in China have a QR code that you can scan and pay to have your message displayed on the screen. Also many restaurants simply stick a QR code on the table for payment. No need for a waiter to carry a terminal. You just scan it when you are ready to pay and leave.
HeatrayEnjoyer 2y ago
Scanning a venmo qr code with my phone is not an improvement.

sofixa 2y ago

> China and India are arguably a lot better with payments because they simply skipped the credit card phase. You can literally pay a street vendor in India through a QR code. I'm not sure I'd say they're "a lot better". Better than the ridiculous US signing a paper bill, yes, but the US is not the standard, they're decades behind it. They use paper cheques ffs! In most of the EU contactless payments that work by card or phone over NFC with well supported/integrated app that work all the same regardless of your bank or exact method of payment sounds much better to me than needing a separate app for the payment provider in question, having to open it to scan a QR code. My current payment flow is I take out my phone, unlock it, tap; or if I don't have my phone / battery is dead, I take out my card, tap it. Having to have a phone, unlock, open a specific app, scan a QR code (muck with light, angle, focus, etc.) and then fill payment details sounds much worse UX.

ricardobayes 2y ago
I wasn't necessarily talking about the US, although I see how you can come to that conclusion. I'm more talking about some other, very developed countries like Germany, in which most vendors don't even accept "normal" debit/credit cards. It's mostly cash only, or a "girocard" which is a German domestic card type. In other countries, I agree that NFC payments made it simpler, although moving money between B2C users is still a bit lacking.
olalonde 2y ago
Still can't do peer to peer pay transfers, still need a bank account, still need to apply for a physical card, still need to pay high transaction fees, still need to fill out credit card information when shopping online, no way to list who is authorized to charge your card and revoke their access, still need a costly terminal to accept payments, etc. Having used both systems, I'd say WeChat and Alipay's payment systems are vastly superior to credit cards in terms of UX.
- sofixa 2y ago
  You're still comparing with the American banking system, not the EU which I was talking about. > Still can't do peer to peer pay transfers SEPA is free and easy to use. > still need a bank account, still need to apply for a physical card Both of which can be had for free. > still need to pay high transaction fees What high transaction fees? 0.2% isn't high for all the infrastructure involved. > no way to list who is authorized to charge your card Yep, but authorizations online require MFA, so that's really not a big problem. > still need a costly terminal to accept payments Nope, there a bunch of startups such as SumUp with very affordable terminals.
  - rainson 2y ago
    > [...] than needing a separate app for the payment provider in question, having to open it to scan a QR code. At least for WeChat/Alipay, the apps integrate with banks. You can also provide your own QR code for payment which gets scanned. The flow is then unlock your phone, show the QR code. There also isn't a step to fill payment details (unless you are comparing to some imaginary payment system). > much worse UX Presenting a QR code, opening a scanner, or bringing out the NFC payment UI are all single step operations. (unless you want to manually open the apple wallet app instead of using the double click function, for example.) I don't think you are being fair here. NFC payment has its own problems: you have to line up the devices, which means moving very close to the payment terminal. Often different terminals have different areas to line up. The scanning flow is superior as there is much greater margin of error in positioning and you can pay from a greater distance. If you bring a bunch of cards instead of having a charged phone, that's a preference but not a UX improvement. > SEPA is free and easy to use. Yes, and you will have to have a phone, unlock, open a specific app, fill in payment details.
    - olalonde 2y ago
      > The scanning flow is superior as there is much greater margin of error in positioning and you can pay from a greater distance. True. Some giant screens (e.g. in clubs) in China have a QR code that you can scan and pay to have your message displayed on the screen. Also many restaurants simply stick a QR code on the table for payment. No need for a waiter to carry a terminal. You just scan it when you are ready to pay and leave.

HeatrayEnjoyer 2y ago

Scanning a venmo qr code with my phone is not an improvement.