The Italian government is imposing a cap on
merchant service charges in a bid to boost electronic payment
volumes and crack-down on tax evasion.
The country’s treasury is placing a 1.5%
cap on all retail transactions, and has banned merchant service
charges altogether on petrol purchases of under EUR100.
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The move is part of a wider economic reforms
agenda, and is designed to increase the volume of electronic
payments at point of sale and reduce the amount of cash in system.
Tax evasion is estimated to amount to over 22% of Italy’s GDP.
The government announced the policy less than
two months after economist Mario Monti took responsibility for the
running of the Italian government.
The Italian merchant acquiring industry has
expressed deep concern, saying that the government’s move does not
take into account the economics of card payments and card
acquiring. Some banks are already said to be exiting the provision
of merchant services to petrol stations.
One source at an Italian acquirer told
Cards International that their business stands to lose
EUR30,000 a day due to the restrictions on petrol alone. “This
could set a worrying precedent for the Eurozone,” said one industry
commentator. “It could well be picked up on by other Eurozone
governments as economies across the region struggle to stay
afloat.”
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By GlobalData
