PAYONE: START OF THE NATIONWIDE ROLLOUT OF WERO E-COMMERCE ACCEPTANCE FOR MERCHANTS

Frankfurt am Main, 18.11.2025

PAYONE, a joint venture of Worldline, a global leader in payment services, and the DSV Group, now offers the Wero digital wallet payment system nationwide for merchants and service providers in Germany as an acquirer and a licensed payment service provider.

PAYONE's shareholder Worldline was one of the first shareholders in the EPI Company since November 2020. In 2024, EPI introduced a new payment system based on real-time payments, Wero, which has been successfully launched for person-to-person (P2P) payments in France, Belgium, and Germany. With official EPI membership, PAYONE can now offer its German merchant customers Wero acceptance in ecommerce nationwide after successful pilot payment transactions with selected merchants.

Opportunity for a European and sovereign payment solution

Wero is a cross-border digital payment system with integrated buyer protection. The current 45 million core customers of the existing EPI members across Europe can now pay on merchant websites using their familiar banking app.

Advantages of Wero for consumers:

• Higher trust than traditional digital wallets: Wero is already integrated into the bank's own apps, which are familiar to the paying consumers, and directly connected to the respective checking account.

• Fully compliant for European data protection: Wero complies with European regulations and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

• Easy to use with a user-friendly interface that only requires a mobile phone number.

• More convenience for integrating multiple bank accounts: availability of a standalone Wero wallet app.

Advantages for merchants offering Wero as a payment method:

• Addressing the increasing demand from consumers for a Europeansovereign payment solution.

• Increased security through buyer protection and an explicit consent from the consumer for each type of payment (immediate, staged, recurring, etc.).

• Fewer chargebacks due to active customer consent management.

• Reduction of purchase cancellations through straightforward handling, and a higher conversion rate thanks to a seamless payment method.

• Low transaction costs.

Wero will offer a complete omnichannel solution for merchants, allowing customers to pay not only in online shops but also in physical stores. The rollout of in-store acceptance is planned from 2026.

Martina Weimert, CEO of EPI Company declares: "With the launch of e-commerce payments in Europe one year after the P2P launch, EPI provides a step further towards a viable European payment solution. Wero is set up as an instant payment solution and wallet allowing now to pay online, which is a great added value attractive for consumers and merchants. The seamless integration of Wero for online purchases of goods or, for example, tickets to a show enables Europeans to choose a secure, reliable, and sovereign solution for online payments.”

Ottmar Bloching, CEO of PAYONE, comments: “Wero is a new payment solution that reflects a clear European stance. We are very pleased to launch it with in Germany. E-commerce merchants can offer their customers an alternative to the digital wallets of US payment services. Consumers benefit from a cross-border payment solution that is embedded in a familiar digital environment thanks to integration with their bank's app, making it intuitive and easy to use.”

About PAYONE

PAYONE is the leading payment provider in Germany and Austria. In stationary shops, mobile or online – PAYONE helps merchants and service providers address the challenges of cashless payment. As a full-service payment service provider, PAYONE ensures quick, easy and reliable digital payment processes. PAYONE develops customised solutions for all industries and sizes of companies according to the highest security standards. The pioneering omni-channel concepts from PAYONE help merchants provide their customers with omni-channel shopping experiences. In doing so, PAYONE is pursuing the objective of enabling integrated payment via all touchpoints. PAYONE processes 5.4 billion transactions a year for 277,000 customers. Furthermore, with its round 1,300 employees at three locations, the company also delivers many value-added services which extend far beyond the traditional payment business. PAYONE is a joint venture of Worldline and the DSV Group. The company works for prestigious global brands and small and medium-sized businesses throughout Europe, such as Deutsche Bahn, Rossmann, notebooksbillliger.de and Sansibar.
www.payone.com

About Worldline

Worldline [Euronext: WLN] supports companies of all types and sizes in their growth plans - quickly, easily and securely. With state-of-the-art payment technology, local expertise and customised solutions for hundreds of markets and industries, Worldline supports the business development of over one million companies worldwide. Worldline generated a 4.6 billion euros revenue in 2024.
www.worldline.com

About the DSV Group

The DSV Group is the central service provider for the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe, the German market leader in financial services. It generates consolidated sales of around 902 million euros (2024). Headquartered in Stuttgart, the company has a nationwide presence and employs 2,764 people. Three specialised competence brands characterise the DSV Group's presence in the direction of the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe: S-Communication Services, S-Management Services and S-Payment. In addition, SPublic Services is aimed at local authorities and municipal companies.

Press contact PAYONE

Susanne Grupp
Lyoner Straße 15 | 60528 Frankfurt/Main
Telefon: +49 69 6630-5132
susanne.grupp@payone.com

Press contact Worldline

Virginie Bonnet
Telefon: +33 (0)6 18 70 72 12
virginie.bonnet@worldline.com

Omnicom Reputation Group for EPI

hub.epi@omnicomprgroup.com