> How does digital euro replace credit cards? That's basically the same as direct debit. It doesn't address the reason why I use credit cards.

Exactly, it is just their latest marketing move to have people accept it.

I was in a meeting at the ECB 6 years ago, the digital euro was high priority and we were supposed to see the first pilot 5 years ago.

The project is actually older and I saw schematic of the system and screenshot and the management interface 6 years ago. It was developed by a German company.

I am not sure why we are not using it right now... it can either be:

- the urgency, like upcoming financial collapse, disappeared,

- the bank lobbied so hard they killed the previous design,

- the EU is just insanely incompetent.