Here's an interesting policy development out of Europe. A new regulation is coming down that lets merchants express a preference for digital payments—but here's the catch: they'll still be required to accept cash. On the surface, it looks like regulators are pumping the brakes on the digital payment push. What's actually happening? The EU appears to be balancing two competing priorities. On one hand, digital payments have obvious benefits: faster settlement, lower fraud risk, better transaction tracking. On the other hand, forcing consumers onto digital-only rails raises legitimate concerns about financial accessibility and inclusion. Merchants can signal they'd rather process everything digitally, but the requirement to accept cash acts as a safety valve. It preserves consumer choice while acknowledging the practical shift toward card, mobile, and eventually blockchain-based payment rails. The nuance here matters for anyone watching how traditional finance intersects with emerging payment technologies. Regulators aren't anti-digital—they're just insisting the transition happens without leaving people behind.