# Wero 84 Hacker News commenters recommended Wero and 96 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 11 of 13 months. **Verdict:** People recommend Wero for instant, fee-free bank-to-bank payments using only a phone number, built on SEPA Instant as a European alternative to Visa and Mastercard. The most common caveat is that it requires a bank app and, in the critics' view, depends on Google or Apple phones. ## Why people recommend it - Instant bank transfers, no card middleman (4 comments): "New systems like Wero are based on instant bank transfers rather than a credit card company that acts as a middle man." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49074281)) "Wero, replacement for US credit card rails in Europe, is being built on top of SEPA Instant." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49636650)) "It's basically instant bank transfer without any fee or limitation on how many you can do." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46743426)) - Pay with just a phone number (4 comments): "it's a nice thing to be able to send money across european countries only with a phone number" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48925721)) "It's also more convenient than giving out an opaque UUID to your friend to transfer you money" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46966778)) "Wero lets users send money using just a phone number — no IBAN, no card, no intermediary." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46962421)) - Built into existing banking apps (2 comments): "Having it integrated in every banks app is actually better, so people don't have to set up another app and register for something." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50205535)) "The fact that's it's integrated into the existing banking apps helps." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48207522)) - Fast, smooth checkout experience (3 comments): "The whole process had a very "snappy" feeling without waiting for any of the usual spinners and redirects." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49072912)) "From a UX point of view, both payers and merchants, it's still the most practical and fast." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48245888)) "It's pretty awesome and seems to quickly have replaced all other apps" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48207412)) ## What people warn about - Requires bank app and Google/Apple phone (6 comments): "The bad part about Wero is, at least in some countries, it depends on your bank, and you need that banks app" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50206699)) "Isn't Wero just another proprietary app that requires a Google or Apple smartphone?" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49074428)) "My primary issue is requiring a Google or Apple blessed phone for the protocol that is supposed to replace the American alternative" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48940693)) - Unclear benefit over instant transfers (2 comments): "it works OK, I don't really get what the difference is between this and instant bank transfers" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47039845)) "I don't see which problem Wero is solving. Cross country p2p money transfers? Not something people do often." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46973045)) - Weaker fraud protection than credit cards (2 comments): "For consumers, Wero, Pix, and similar systems only have down sides for online use. The most important down side is that you can't reclaim your funds if you've been the victim of fraud." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48208794)) "Wero also afaik does not have as much consumer protection as (certainly some) credit cards offer." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48210855)) - Shares IBAN or name with recipients (2 comments): "I have recently seen people surprised when they sent a Wero transaction and the other party could see their IBAN." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48209641)) "it lets anyone lookup the name associated with a phone number or email address, which is a privacy nightmare" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49476269)) ## Alternatives hackers recommend - [Apple Pay](https://hackerapproved.com/p/apple-pay.md): 73 recommend - [Google Pay](https://hackerapproved.com/p/google-pay.md): 26 recommend - [Google Wallet](https://hackerapproved.com/p/google-wallet.md): 22 recommend - [Curve Pay](https://hackerapproved.com/p/curve.md): 22 recommend - [Swish payment app](https://hackerapproved.com/p/swish.md): 19 recommend ## Where to get it - [Visit the official site](https://wero-wallet.eu/) ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Wero", https://hackerapproved.com/p/wero/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).