Senigallia, Italy – January 23, 2025 – Digital identity remains one of the key pillars for the future of the European single market, with the European digital wallet at the center of the debate. Adopting collaborative approaches between governments and private sector players to ensure interoperability, security, and market opportunities for continental operators is the key to the success of this initiative.
Building an inclusive and reliable digital ecosystem requires common standards, technological investments, and a clear regulatory framework that fosters trust among citizens and businesses. Only through a synergy between technological innovation and shared governance can a digital transformation be achieved that supports European competitiveness and strengthens the continent’s strategic autonomy.
Diversity in digital wallet models across Europe
The digital wallet models developed by European governments exhibit significant differences, with varying approaches to collaboration with private sector actors and the creation of market opportunities for European operators. In a constantly evolving geopolitical landscape, avoiding fragmentation and excessive regulation is crucial, as highlighted in the Draghi (competitiveness) and Letta (EU single market) reports. The future of the Union hinges on its ability to develop strong and integrated industrial realities.
The European Wallet: a vision to be build
The architecture of the European digital wallet is essentially built on three fundamental pillars:
- Digital identity: Ensuring secure identification and authentication for individuals and businesses.
- Data exchange: Facilitating the secure sharing of verified information and attributes across markets and countries.
- Digital payments: Supporting seamless and secure transactions, with a focus on the Digital Euro.
This vision, which extends beyond identity to include attributes and payments, represents a step forward toward greater interoperability and security in the European digital market.
Digital identities: a fragmented landscape
The European digital identity landscape remains highly fragmented, both in terms of user types and their usage patterns. While countries like France and Italy are among the leaders, Germany and Spain are not yet in the top 10 for adoption.
Source: Politecnico di Milano / Dipartimento di ingegneria gestionale
From a global perspective, 149 digital wallets are currently active in Europe and worldwide (31 government-backed, 4 private-public, and 114 private). This underscores the importance of digital identities and trust services as foundational elements of modern life and rights in contemporary societies.
Source: Politecnico di Milano / Dipartimento di ingegneria gestionale
Italy and the state of digital identity
In Italy, projections for the adoption of CIEid—considered the true digital identity linked to the Electronic Identity Card—indicate a delay of approximately five years in meeting targets if the current growth rate remains unchanged. Meanwhile, SPID continues to be the cornerstone of Italy’s digital identity system, ranking among Europe’s most successful cases in terms of usage. However, SPID primarily operates at a substantial level of assurance (LoA Substantial) and is managed by private operators. Since 2017, these providers have played a key role in driving SPID adoption by investing heavily in distribution, support, and continuous improvements to encourage citizen engagement.
Looking at the data, 91% of users prefer SPID for authentication over CIE, despite the latter offering a higher level of assurance (LoA High). However, CIE’s growth follows a slower trajectory, lagging an estimated 4-5 years behind SPID, raising concerns about meeting regulatory deadlines and targets. This delay is further complicated by the eIDAS 2 regulation, which mandates a high level of assurance for many trust services, posing a significant challenge for Italy.
Source: Politecnico di Milano / Dipartimento di ingegneria gestionale
The recent Decree-Law No. 19 of March 2, 2024, opens new opportunities for Italy by allowing greater integration of public and private sector expertise in developing the IT wallet. This tool represents a strategic evolution to enhance user experience and strengthen Italy’s position in the European landscape.
Future prospects for European digital identity
Italy’s experience provides valuable insights for the future of Europe: the adoption timelines for digital identity schemes vary significantly, primarily depending on the perceived convenience for end users—both in terms of simplicity and tangible benefits—as well as the incentives for ecosystem stakeholders to participate. This remains one of the key challenges in ensuring the success of the digital wallet, as it directly influences stakeholder engagement and decision-making.
To overcome this challenge, it is crucial to clearly define incentives for each participant and create a flywheel effect that encourages voluntary adoption by users, attribute providers, trust and payment service operators, and businesses that could benefit from the system.
The future of the European digital wallet will ultimately depend on the ability to build a collaborative ecosystem where all stakeholders are motivated to contribute, and where end users can perceive real and immediate benefits.
Source: Agenda Digitale