ROME -- Digital payments in Italy increased by 13 percent in value during the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2022, according to a study published on Friday.

Digital transactions totaled 206 billion euros (218 billion U.S. dollars) between January and June, and this figure may reach 425-440 billion euros by the end of the year, nearly on par with cash payments over the same period in the country, according to a study published by the Innovative Payments Observatory at the Polytechnic University of Milan.

The upward trend is expected to slow down in the future unless supportive measures for digital systems are introduced soon, experts said.

"Without further exogenous effects, or measures aimed at boosting the use of digital instruments, this growth (in card payments) will eventually settle down to pre-pandemic levels in the coming years," Ivano Asaro, head of the Innovative Payments Observatory, said in a statement.

The study showed that contactless payments at the point of sale (POS) exceeded 100 billion euros in value during the first six months, continuing their growth although at a slower annual pace (25 percent) compared to previous years.

It also unveiled that mobile and other "proximity payments" -- made through devices that communicate at a short physical distance -- kept increasing at a very high pace in Italy. They registered a 97 percent increase, equal to some 12.2 billion euros, in the first half of 2023 compared to the same period of 2022. (1 euro = 1.06 U.S. dollars)