Italian MNVO launches NFC trial

600 Nòverca subscribers to get access to mobile contactless payments at 3,000 points of sale in Milan and Turin.

Technology group Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) is supplying NFC-capable SIM cards to Nòverca, with payments powered by Banca Intesa Sanpaolo.

The trialists will be able to pay with an NFC-capable Samsung Wave S5780 in a wide variety of stores connected to the Setefi card issuer network.

G&D says this is the first project of its type in Italy. It has also equipped the SIM cards with MasterCard PayPass technology, meaning that mobile payments made with this technology meet the same security standards as conventional card payments.

“This project is an important milestone on the road to introducing mobile payments in the Italian market. The close cooperation between all the players in the mobile ecosystem is adding tangible value for their customers,” said Willem Bulthuis, SVP of mobile security, global marketing and sales at G&D.

“With access to 3,000 POS terminals, the smartphone users can opt for contactless payment for virtually any of their everyday purchases. Uppermost for us is the security of the transactions – we want users to feel confident at all times using this new payment technology.”