European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde is calling for a payments revolution — one that breaks Europe's reliance on U.S. and Chinese platforms like Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, and Alipay. Describing it as “a march towards independence,” Lagarde said Europe must build its own alternative to secure financial sovereignty. A fully unified capital market, she added, could pave the way for deeper fiscal integration — with a potential value add of up to €3 trillion annually.
Speaking on The Pat Kenny Show, Lagarde underscored Europe’s dependence on foreign digital payment infrastructure. “Visa, MasterCard, PayPal and Alipay are all controlled by American or Chinese companies,” she noted, arguing, “We should make sure there is a European offer.”
Her comments come amid renewed focus on the Capital Markets Union (CMU) — a long-standing EU initiative aimed at creating a single capital market across member states. The goal is to improve the flow of investments and savings across the bloc, giving businesses better access to funding and citizens more efficient savings vehicles.
Lagarde linked progress on the CMU to broader economic integration, saying it could ease the pressure on monetary policy and lay the groundwork for a future fiscal union. While the claim of €3 trillion in annual added value stems from a widely cited Reddit post, more official estimates suggest a slightly more conservative impact. According to the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS), deeper integration could generate over €2.8 trillion in additional GDP by 2032, with at least €321 billion attributed to completing the Economic and Monetary Union.
Still, building a European alternative to Visa and Mastercard faces steep challenges. Among them: