Currently being piloted in preparation of a full commercial launch in mid-2013, SIA says it has already secured the support of major Italian telecom operators and banks to provide NFC services through its central hub that enables contactless payment transactions.

The processor is using Gemalto's Allynis Trusted Service Management (TSM) for the project, which it claims is the first national infrastructure of its kind in Europe.

Up to 200,000 contactless payment terminals will be deployed in Italy by the end of 2013 and by offering a secure and scalable infrastructure that ensures full interoperability and can seamlessly accommodate new service providers, SIA claims that it is putting Italy at the "forefront of the cashless revolution".

Nicola Cordone, deputy GM, SIA, says: "By creating a central hub, we meet the needs of both the banking and telecoms sectors fostering the NFC ecosystem and mobile payments. Using Gemalto's proven platform, SIA is allowing all stakeholders to avoid numerous individual arrangements when introducing new contactless services."