Oh, it's a shame!

The Germans have barely given up their long-term undercooled relationship with the bank card during the corona pandemic and learned to love contactless payment with plastic pieces instead of allegedly dirty cash in the shops - then the new pleasure is denied them again.

Thomas Klemm

Editor in the "Money & More" section of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.

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The American payment service provider Mastercard, which has just announced that banks will no longer be allowed to issue Maestro cards in the future, is seen as a mood killer.

Of the 100 million bank cards in use in this country, which are officially called Girocard, not only will the well-known logo with the blue and red circle disappear.

But also the possibility of paying or withdrawing money anywhere in the world where the logo of the Maestro network has hitherto been emblazoned.

Will Visa follow suit?

And that might just be the beginning of the end. It can be assumed that after Mastercard's advance, the competitor Visa will also follow and sooner or later discontinue its comparable V-Pay. With their infrastructure, the two are so dominant, especially in shops, that, according to the Bundesbank, they cover two thirds of European card payments.

All of this sounds like a tough cut and severe restrictions and has shocked consumers who have got used to the appearance and convenience of their girocard, which is commonly known as an EC card. But it will not be that bad, it will be revealed, in the future world of payments. Because hand on heart: The ultimate wisdom is the German Girocard and the (still) associated Maestro network. In addition, the German consumer still has a lot of time to get used to the conditions that will prevail in the future.

Ultimately, Mastercard will not be phasing out its Maestro brand until July 1, 2023, and many cards will remain valid well beyond this date.

It can be assumed that banks will start replacing expiring or lost cards before the summer after next.

So why all the fuss that in the future we will no longer be able to conveniently pay or withdraw money abroad with this plastic part?

Such a fear would be exaggerated.

When Maestro and the less important V-Pay disappear, there will be existing and new options for extensive card use.

So it will go on as usual.

It remains to be seen whether long-term with the Girocard or a comparable card.

In any case, Maestro does not immediately abolish the versatile payment card itself.

Like Mercedes without a star

The loss of Maestro is primarily a symbolic one. What is missing is the blue-red logo, which takes up the tradition of Eurocheques in terms of color and also stood out on the EC card. The trademark rights of EC, by the way, have been with Mastercard for a long time. If the Maestro logo disappears from the Girocard, then it may seem disturbing: like a Mercedes without a star, Adidas without three stripes or the Federal Republic without an eagle. However, Maestro is only a so-called co-badge, which is not the focus, but also referred to the possibility of using the network and thus the ability of the card to be used abroad.

Mastercard justified its decision to break up with Maestro in a comprehensible blog.

To put it bluntly: the Maestro card is an ole thing, introduced in 1991 and long out of date.

In the beginning, the brand and network were downright groundbreaking.

In order to be able to pay comfortably and securely at home or abroad, consumers no longer had to resort to checks or traveller's checks, but could simply pay with their debit card.

Debit means: every amount is immediately debited from your own account.

This gives card owners the good feeling that they always have an overview of their expenses.

This is different from most credit cards, where all charges are collected and debited as a large chunk once a month.