Postepay Evolution
PostePay S.p.A. · Mastercard
Postepay Evolution is the most widely used prepaid card with an IBAN in Italy, issued by PostePay S.p.A. (Poste Italiane group) on the Mastercard network. Unlike the Standard it has an Italian IBAN: salary/pension crediting, incoming and outgoing SEPA transfers, direct debits. €5 issuance fee and €19 annual fee (for cards requested from 12/01/2026; older cards pay €15). Withdrawals at Postamat ATMs are free, the FX fee is 1.10% on foreign-currency spending and the plafond reaches €30,000. Despite the IBAN it remains e-money: funds are NOT covered by the FITD deposit-guarantee scheme (no protection up to €100,000), but are safeguarded at the e-money institution supervised by the Bank of Italy.
Data & conditions
| Network | Mastercard |
|---|---|
| Fund custody | Custodial (platform holds funds) |
| Issuance fee | €5 |
| Annual fee | €19/year |
| Free ATM limit | €0 at Postamat ATMs; €2 for euro withdrawals at bank ATMs in Italy and abroad; €5 for non-euro withdrawals |
| ATM withdrawal | Free |
| FX markup | 1.1% |
| Cashback | Not disclosed |
| Contactless | Yes |
| Virtual card | No |
| KYC | Full |
| Privacy | 2/10 |
| Supported countries | EEA · 1+ countries |
| Funding / solidity | PostePay S.p.A. (Patrimonio destinato IMEL), gruppo Poste Italiane · la prepagata con IBAN più diffusa in Italia |
| Regulator | Banca d'Italia |
| Segment | B2C |
| Funding / solidity | PostePay S.p.A. (ring-fenced EMI capital), Poste Italiane group · Italy's most widely used prepaid card with IBAN |
| MiCA / License status | Istituto di Moneta Elettronica (IMEL) — Albo IMEL Banca d'Italia n. 19 E-money on an Italian EMI licence (Bank of Italy) |
Plans & pricing
Strengths
- Italian IBAN: salary/pension crediting, incoming and outgoing SEPA transfers, utility direct debits
- Free withdrawals (€0) at Postamat ATMs · Mastercard network with contactless and mobile payments
- Low FX fee (1.10%) and high plafond (€30,000)
- Italy's most widely used and accepted prepaid-account card, fully managed from the app
- No notable sovereignty advantage documented.
Weaknesses
- €19 annual fee (for cards from 12/01/2026) and €5 issuance fee
- E-money: funds NOT covered by the FITD scheme, no cashback or interest on the balance
- Cash top-ups and third-bank withdrawals are charged (€2 at a bank ATM in euro, €5 in foreign currency)
- Single Mastercard network (no domestic debit co-badge)
- Custodial: the platform holds your funds and can freeze or lose them.
- Full KYC required: verified identity, zero pseudonymity.
- Funds can be frozen at the platform’s discretion.
- Subject to regulation (E-money on an Italian EMI licence (Bank of Italy)): reporting to authorities and freezes on order.
- FATF-aligned jurisdiction: strong cooperation with authorities.
Verdict
Postepay Evolution is the best of the Postepay range for anyone wanting an account-like card: Italian IBAN for salary, transfers and direct debits, free withdrawals at Postamat ATMs, 1.10% FX and a wide plafond (€30,000). Costs remain those of a mass-market product (€5 issuance, €19/year fee) and, like every prepaid card, funds do NOT have FITD cover but only the EMI's safeguarding. Score 3.6: solid and complete, but there are zero-fee e-money accounts with IBAN that beat it on cost.
Registered e-money prepaid card with IBAN on a supervised e-money institution: custodial, full KYC, every operation and transfer tracked and the card blockable or suspendable by the issuer for AML or on court order. No anonymity, no permissionless use: on the sovereignty lens it is the opposite of a self-custody tool.
Promp's editorial rating based on real fees and net annual cost. Promp reviews third-party products independently.
"Sovereignty" rating: score computed on privacy/anonymity (30%), fund control (20%), censorship resistance (20%), trustless/auditability (20%) and costs (10%). Same data, different weights.
Reputation
What happened to people who used Postepay Evolution, and what users say. External signals: they do not feed the promp.it rating.
Incidents & regulatory actions
History not verifiedWe have not yet completed the incident search for this service: no entries here does not mean no events.
Public reviews
-
App Store ↗
4.7/5
490,925 reviews
"Poste Italiane" app (id 781421802), Italian storefront, exact figure from the iTunes Lookup API. Since October 2025 the standalone Postepay app has been discontinued and its features merged here: the rating reflects the unified app (accounts, cards, Postepay, insurance), not Postepay Evolution alone.
Weighted average across 1 public review platform (490,925 reviews in total), weighted by volume. This is not our rating: it is those platforms’ average.
FAQ
Does the Postepay Evolution have a real IBAN?
Yes. The Evolution is registered with an Italian IBAN: you can receive and send SEPA transfers, have your salary or pension credited and set up utility direct debits. This is the main difference from the Postepay Standard, which has no IBAN.
How much does the Postepay Evolution cost?
€5 issuance fee and €19 annual fee charged in advance, for cards requested from 12/01/2026; cards bought in earlier years keep the historical €15 fee. The FX fee is 1.10% on spending in non-euro currencies.
Is the money on the Evolution guaranteed like on a bank account?
No. Despite having an IBAN, the Evolution is e-money, not a deposit account: it is not covered by the FITD deposit-guarantee scheme up to €100,000. Funds are segregated and safeguarded by the e-money institution PostePay S.p.A., supervised by the Bank of Italy.
Sources
- Official service page Circuito · IBAN Data verified on Jul 12, 2026
- poste.it Emissione · Canone · Ricarica · Prelievi · +1 Data verified on Jul 12, 2026