Wero, the instant account-to-account payment solution backed by the European Payments Initiative, is scheduled to launch in Luxembourg in 2026, with the standalone wallet expected to be available to customers by June and Payconiq merchants migrating to the scheme through September, Unzer chief executive Robert Bueninck told Paperjam in an interview. He said the timetable still depends on regulatory approval of the transfer of the Payconiq merchant portfolio to Dutch-licensed payment company Buckaroo and on Luxembourg banks completing their Wero implementations.

Kangkan Halder: What is Unzer’s current timeline for Wero to go live in Luxembourg?

Robert Bueninck: Wero’s rollout in Luxembourg is currently planned for 2026. The standalone wallet and instant account-to-account payment solution is expected to be available to customers by June. Following that, merchants using Payconiq will migrate to Wero through September. This means merchants can start offering Wero for online payments next year. In-store payments at physical points of sale will follow, although there’s no official timeline for that yet. Unzer will be ready, but we are also dependent on Wero timelines.

What are the main bottlenecks or limitations still holding back a Wero launch in Luxembourg, even though it is already live in Germany?

A big reason for Luxembourg coming into the picture a bit later is the step-by-step approach the European Payments Initiative, or EPI, is taking as it rolls out Wero across Europe. They started with Germany, France, and Belgium, but Luxembourg is included in the next group, along with the Netherlands. There are some challenges holding things up - for example, the need for a lot of operational and technical work to connect local banks, making sure the system is ready for merchants and handling things like settlement. They are also working to ensure that the current Payconiq acceptance can switch over to Wero smoothly.

What concrete dependencies do you still have on banks, schemes, or regulators before Wero can be activated for Luxembourg merchants?

From what we know and understand, the remaining dependencies before we can activate Wero for Luxembourg merchants are mostly external. One is the regulatory approval of the merchant-portfolio transfer to Buckaroo, a Dutch-licensed payment company that will manage Wero acceptance for merchants who were previously using Payconiq. Second, the launch also depends on the Luxembourg banks completing their Wero implementations, because merchants can only accept Wero once their customers’ banks are technically reachable on the scheme.

When do you expect to start onboarding the first Luxembourg merchants to Wero, and which merchant segments will you prioritise at the start?

Setting the launch date ultimately depends on Wero. As soon as the technical infrastructure is in place, we will make Wero available to all our merchants--we won’t be prioritising specific ones. In the end, it’s up to each merchant to decide which payment methods they want to offer their customers, and our job is simply to enable them to activate Wero as soon as they’re ready.

What changes, if any, will Luxembourg merchants need to make to their existing point-of-sale terminals?

To start accepting Wero at the POS, most merchants will initially need to support QR code payments. That might mean enabling dynamic QR codes on their existing terminals or cash registers, or for smaller merchants, just putting up a static QR code. In many cases, it will just be a software update rather than replacing any hardware. Looking ahead, as Wero and the wallet evolve, contactless options using NFC are expected to come next, so it’s still important for merchants to future-proof their infrastructure.

How will Wero’s pricing and overall economics for Luxembourg merchants compare with traditional card acquiring?

That is up to Wero and the European Payments Initiative to decide. Based on the data from Germany, Wero could offer better economics than traditional card acquiring--but the exact outcome for Luxembourg merchants remains uncertain until they publish official rates for that market.

Looking ahead, how do you see the interplay between Wero and a possible digital euro?

Essentially, we see ourselves as a partner for our merchants, helping them offer the means of payment their customers want. The digital euro is an interesting project because it supports European sovereignty and makes sense both ethically and economically. That said, many questions remain about how it will actually be implemented, and those details will determine whether consumers see a real benefit or if it ends up being cumbersome.

Wero is a great initiative that we fully support, but ultimately, we’re agnostic about the payment method--what matters is that it’s digital and seamless. Today, customers expect a smooth experience whether they buy online, in-store or on their phone. Merchants should not have to worry about how all their systems fit together--that’s where we come in. We support every way a merchant might sell. And we see it as our mission to enable small and medium-sized businesses, because they may not have big budgets or IT teams, but they have big ambitions. Our goal is to give them the tools, technology and support to stay competitive--whether it is the digital euro or Wero or even agentic commerce.