TITLE: Italy's Banking Association and Trade Groups Sign Payment Services Modernisation Protocol
BODY:
On June 15, 2026, the Italian Banking Association (ABI), Association of Payment Service Providers (APSP), Association of Financial Companies (Assofin), National Confederation of Craftsmen (CNA), Confederation of Italian Craftsmen (Confartigianato), Confederation of Italian Commerce (Confcommercio), Confederation of Italian Service Businesses (Confesercenti), and Italian Federation of Public Exercises (FIPE) signed a joint protocol at the Ministry of Economy and Finance aimed at increasing the distribution, digitalisation, modernisation, and competition of payment services across Italy.
The two-year protocol received a favourable opinion from the Italian Competition Authority (Antitrust). The agreement focuses on enhancing clarity, comparability, and cost mitigation for electronic payment transactions using debit cards, credit cards, and prepaid cards. ABI, APSP, and Assofin committed to encouraging their member organisations to launch promotional initiatives targeting merchants with annual revenues up to €400,000, with particular emphasis on reducing costs for low-value transactions of €30 or less, especially those under €10. These promotional initiatives will run for a minimum of 12 months and receive publicity throughout this period.
To ensure immediate comparability between commercial offers and provide clear information on conditions following promotional periods, the signatories agreed to promote the use of standardised schemas for representing economic conditions. Payment service providers must offer at least one commercial package for businesses with revenues up to €750,000, using the same standardised schemas to facilitate cost comparison. All offers will be published with adequate visibility on member websites and transmitted to the National Council of Economics and Labour (CNEL) in both PDF and editable formats, along with links to relevant operator pages. The protocol will be published on the institutional websites of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, CNEL, and all signatory parties. Trade associations committed to disseminating protocol contents to their members and informing them of additional transparency and comparability initiatives regarding electronic payment instrument acceptance conditions.