Europe's push to curb its dependence on U.S. payments giants Visa and Mastercard has driven a wedge between the European Central Bank and financial firms keen to shield revenues, hobbling efforts to build a home-grown system, several people involved said. A surge in cashless payments since the COVID-19 โ€Œpandemic has increased the euro zone's reliance on U.S. firms, which handle nearly two thirds of card payments in the bloc. European policymakers have made payments sovereignty a strategic priority, as a fragmenting global order raises the risk of access to payments systems being weaponised and new forms of money challenge the euro's role.