iDEAL was introduced in the Netherlands in 2005 by a group of Dutch banks as a standardized way to pay online directly through consumers’ own bank accounts. It quickly changed how payments worked by making online bank transfers simple and highly trusted, without needing credit cards or entering sensitive card details on merchant sites. Because of the large consumer trust it enjoyed, iDEAL became the preferred payment method, accounting for around 70% of Dutch e-commerce transactions [1] and almost 1.5 billion payments annually [2].
The creation of Wero, iDEAL’s successor, reflects a broader need for Europe to reduce its dependence on global card networks and regain strategic control over digital payments. Built as a 100% European payment solution backed by more than 50 million users, Wero goes beyond being just an alternative to existing card schemes. It aims to strengthen regional payment sovereignty and improve cross-border usability within Europe. Wero also addresses the long-standing fragmentation in European payments, lowers the transaction costs for merchants, compared to cards’ cost and provides a scalable alternative to dominant card networks in the long run.
Wero received the trust from Dutch banks that became EPI (European Payments Initiative) members and now aims to scale the same model across Europe. This is why iDEAL’s replacement has the purpose to serve a broader market, beyond the Netherlands.
Although iDEAL’s success in the Dutch market was the blueprint, the scale and scope of Wero are different, while there are a few systematic differences that enable a scheme to become widely adopted. Unlike iDEAL, Wero goes beyond online checkout to include peer-to-peer transfers, in-store payments, subscriptions, and digital wallet services. Wero brings a systematic change: built-in purchase protection, which allows consumers to dispute transactions months after delivery. Under iDeal, disputes are handled directly between the buyer and the merchant. Under Wero, if the pre-dispute is not resolved among the payer and the merchant, then the issuing bank, acquiring bank and the scheme come into play. If ruled unfavourably, merchants need to support the chargeback and fee towards the PSP. In case a merchant is unable to repay the chargeback, the PSP needs to take the loss.
What is the timeline for the Netherlands? Consumers already see the combined logo of iDEAL and Wero in commercials and in their app. What is not visible for them is the gradual technical migration phases. The Dutch banks just kicked-off the first phase successfully - an important milestone for both merchants and consumers. After 2nd phase of the migration go-live in October 2026, merchants are expected to switch the transaction initiation from iDEAL to Wero. By December 2027, all merchants should have switched to initiating Wero.
What is the country roll-out? Wero for e/commerce is live in Germany and Belgium. France, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Austria will follow throughout 2026 and 2027.
The rise of pay by bank
Following the introduction of PSD2, Account-to-Account payments have become available throughout Europe. PSPs looking to expand across multiple EU countries may currently find that A2A offers more immediate coverage and flexibility. This is advantageous for businesses with clients in both the Eurozone and non-Eurozone who need transparent foreign exchange services. For example, a pan-European merchant with Polish customers who cannot opt for their usual local payment method (Blik) at checkout can instead offer them 'Pay by bank'. They can then easily select their bank and pay from their Zloty account, using Worldline’s FX feature to convert the payment to euros.
With new use cases unlocked due to Instant Payment Regulation and the upcoming PSD3 and PSR which will increase interoperability and transparency. A2A payments are expected to grow by 83% in Europe from 2025 to 2030. [3].
This is the reason why acquirers and merchants look towards A2A as a complimentary alternative to Wero, opting for the broadest reach and highest adoption with both payment solutions.
A2A: A complementary path forward
The question isn't which approach will win, but which combination will offer the best of both worlds: widespread adoption of Wero and a local winner, alongside open banking’s A2A wide reach and seamless user experience.
Therefore, many players decided to use A2A as a strategic complement to scheme-based solutions, enabling them to maintain operational flexibility and competitive differentiation, especially for cross-border transactions that go beyond the roll-out countries for Wero.
At Worldline, customer benefit from a remarkable reach of more than 3,000 connected banks in 20 countries, with a bank coverage of at least 80%. Banks can access a robust open banking platform, where we process over 200M of A2A and iDEAL yearly transactions. With a simple integration with one API, you can process both Wero and A2A.
Learn more about Account-to-Account Payments (A2A)
[1] https://ideal.nl/en/sitemap/about-us
[2] https://factsheet.betaalvereniging.nl/en/
