At least one article I found says that it's about liability: https://origin.bankrate.com/finance/credit-cards/are-chip-and-pin-credit-cards-coming-1.aspx https

At least one article I found says that it's about liability: https://origin.bankrate.com/finance/credit-cards/are-chip-and-pin-credit-cards-coming-1.aspx https://origin.bankrate.com/finance/credit-cards/are-chip-an... Supposedly the big motivator behind the chip and PIN push in other countries is that liability for fraudulent transactions could be pushed onto the cardholder. ("You didn't guard your PIN and your money was stolen, sucks for you.") That article says that Regulation E of the Electronic Funds Transfer Act of 1978 in the United States prohibits such a shift by US banks. Without the motivation, banks in the US haven't invested in the infrastructure because it doesn't get them anything. Swiping a card "just works," people are used to it, it's a solved problem, and doesn't require any new outlays of money (not just for the cards and readers, also advertising about how it works, increased call center staff for confused customers, more livery for merchants, and so on) so I guess they're letting sleeping dogs lie.