The Italian Antitrust body has approved a deal between shops, banks, and payment businesses to lower small card transaction fees, as requested by the government.

The clearance is expected to enable a formal accord, allowing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to eliminate the possibility of a windfall tax on payment providers like Nexi, Mastercard, and Visa.

The proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) does not see any criticalities, giving market operators full control over transaction costs.

The MOU encourages financial organizations to launch competitive commercial activities on payments under 30 euros without explicit assurances.

The Treasury could call the parties on July 27 to formalize the accord.