Pay by card and without PIN up to 50 €: the revolution can wait for the summer

The start of the “no-PIN” card payments “revolution” was delayed, but it is now a matter of waiting a few months.

We will be able to pay up to 50 € – now the limit is 25 € – using the in-store debit and credit card, contactless and without entering the PIN.

Novelty is the result of an agreement between ATMAnd visa e Master Card is a credit card In 2020, the joint memorandum was announced As of January 2021.

Valeria Portalli, who deals with these issues at Digital, explains, “So far, however, no POS has been enabled and the € 25 threshold remains in effect. We expect systems to be updated by buyers (POS suppliers) and banks.” Observatories innovation Polytechnico di Milano.

From my father (the Italian Banking Association) they confirm that the ball is in the area of ​​banking and acquirers. Nexi, the main Italian acquirer, announces a schedule among all operators in the sector (not only banks and acquirers but also many brokers and technical partners) for the first time coordinated, within a few months, “between May and September”.

Late checkout is explained precisely by the need to leave everything together, that is, all banks for all holders of checking accounts, Italian points of sale and cards.

You cannot start in a staggered manner because the chaos will break out: in the same store, some customers, who have certain cards from certain banks, will not need to enter the PIN, while others will have to enter the PIN. A situation that will create confusion between customers and the store owners themselves.

Leaving together means leaving when the slowest is ready.

Almost all points of sale can be updated remotely: there is no big problem with this step, when you need to change some cards, they are not enabled for payment without PIN up to 50 €. Relevant communications from card providers and point of sale customers should also be coordinated.

Hence the schedule among the sector operators, which coordinates everything, for the debut that promises to significantly change the shopping experience in Italy, accelerate it a lot, and also to take advantage of the cash productivity of merchants.

The opposite is that the amount that any fraudster, using our card, could steal from us, without the need for a PIN, rises this way. “Yes, but the banking system assumes this increased risk, and because of PSD2 legislation, as confirmed by a ruling by the European Union Court of Justice last year, it is required to compensate for fraudulent payments made without a pin,” explains Massimiliano Nicotra, attorney, electronic payments expert.