New record for digital payments at 518 billion

In Italia, Buy Now Pay Later (buy today and pay tomorrow) also shows significant growth in 2025 with a transaction volume of EUR 9.9 billion (+45% compared to 2024). The strongest push comes from online, where BNPL grows by +50%. However, for this segment, 2026 will be a decisive year because the entry into force of the second European Consumer Credit Directive (CCD2) will significantly change the regulatory framework, imposing new requirements on operators and affecting a user experience that until now has been simple and fast. The new rules will force operators to rethink processes, compliance and user experience and will impose a new balance between consumer protection, sustainability of the model and simplicity of use.

The payment industry is entering a phase where innovation is no longer just about the instrument, but about the level of automation and delegation one is willing to accept. The idea that an intelligent agent can select, authorise or activate a payment opens up completely new scenarios. But the more invisible the payment becomes, the more decisive security becomes: the same technology that promises efficiency can also amplify vulnerabilities, fraud and new systemic risks. "In the midst of a global transformation of financial systems, talking about payments means talking about the future," emphasises Ivano Asaro, director of the Innovative Payments Observatory of the Politecnico di Milano. "At an international level, digital payments now dominate over cash, with cards remaining central but smartphones and wearables driving growth. In Europe, the ferment around instant payment, Digital Euro and new pan-European infrastructures marks a clear direction. Managing this evolution will be decisive for strengthening the payments system and overall economic competitiveness'

The weight of instant account-to-account payments is growing everywhere. In Brazil, in the third quarter of 2025, Pix processed 7.9 billion P2B transactions, up +13%, while cards stopped at 11.6 billion, a slight growth of +4%. In India, as of December 2025, UPI exceeded 21.6 billion transactions, up +29% year-on-year, accounting for 86% of the country's digital transactions. Europe is also on the move: on the one hand, Wero is aiming at the construction of a pan-European digital wallet, which at the end of 2025 counted 200 million peer-to-peer transfers, 11 billion euros in transacted transactions and 49 banks in the Eurozone involved, and on the other the interconnection of existing domestic systems through the European Payment Alliance, which also involves Italy's BANCOMAT.

On the monetary front, 2025 has seen a sharp increase in the focus on stablecoins, which are now dominated by operators linked to the US dollar: Tether controls about 58% of total capitalisation, while Circle stands at 23%. In parallel, Europe is accelerating both on regulation - with MiCAR now operational - and on the Digital Euro project, which will enter a crucial phase of technical prototyping and regulatory consolidation in 2026. "The new payments game is now being played on efficiency and the ability to build a critical and strategic infrastructure," emphasises Valeria Portale, Director of the Innovative Payments Observatory of the Politecnico di Milano. "Stablecoin and Digital Euro open a new phase, in which innovation and independence become the pillars of the future of payments. Europe is at the heart of this change and must learn to lead it in order to protect its independence and ensure the competitiveness of its economic system'.