Proposed Visa/Mastercard Swipe Fee Settlement Won’t Help Main Street
A proposed agreement for Visa and Mastercard to reduce “swipe” fees charged to merchants to process credit card transactions would provide “very small relief” and does not end the need for Congress to pass legislation, MPC said.
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CSP Daily News: Visa, Mastercard Agree to $30 Billion Settlement Over Credit and Debit Card Swipe Fees
The settlement “would provide very small relief and does not end the need for Congress to pass legislation,” the Merchants Payments Coalition (MPC) said in a statement following the announced agreement. “This settlement is a bad deal for merchants,” MPC Executive Committee member and National Grocers Association Senior Vice President of Government Relations and Counsel Christopher Jones said. “A few years of very small relief followed by business as usual is not a good outcome from 20 years of litigation. The settlement does nothing to actually bring competitive market forces to swipe fees or change the behavior of a cartel that centrally fixes rates and bars competition. Instead, it tries to provide token, temporary relief and then allows the card companies to raise rates yet again. Congress needs to act so that we will have real reform that will benefit merchants and their customers.”
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Mass Market Retailers: Merchants group criticizes proposed ‘swipe’ fee settlement
“A few years of very small relief followed by business as usual is not a good outcome from 20 years of litigation,” Christopher Jones, an MPC executive committee member and senior vice president of government relations at the National Grocers Association, said in a statement. Added Jones, “The settlement does nothing to actually bring competitive market forces to swipe fees or change the behavior of a cartel that centrally fixes rates and bars competition. Instead, it tries to provide token, temporary relief and then allows the card companies to raise rates yet again. Congress needs to act so that we will have real reform that will benefit merchants and their customers.”
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New York Times: Visa and Mastercard Agree to Cap Their Swipe Fees in Settlement
But not all merchants, particularly smaller ones, are as optimistic about the proposed changes. Temporary fee reductions fall short of what’s needed and underscore why Congress needs to pass legislation to promote a more competitive marketplace, said the Merchants Payments Coalition, a trade group representing retailers, supermarkets, convenience stores, gas stations and online merchants. “The settlement does nothing to actually bring competitive market forces to swipe fees or change the behavior of a cartel that centrally fixes rates and bars competition,” said Christopher Jones, a member of the coalition’s executive committee and senior vice president of government relations at the National Grocers Association. “Instead, it tries to provide token, temporary relief and then allows the card companies to raise rates yet again.”
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Merchants Support Senator Durbin’s Comments in Favor of the Credit Card Competition Act
The Merchants Payments Coalition today welcomed comments by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Richard Durbin, D-IL, in support of the Credit Card Competition Act. Sen. Durbin also chided the CEOs of Visa, MasterCard, United Airlines and American Airlines for rejecting his invitation to address the issue at an April 9 hearing on swipe fees.
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Fox Business: Swipe fees cost consumers an estimated $578 million on Valentine’s Day
"Valentine’s Day is one of the busiest days of the year for restaurants, but that special meal out is going to cost a little more for the restaurant and the customer this year, thanks to higher swipe fees," Brennan Duckett, a Merchant Payments Coalition Executive Committee member, said. "Whether it’s eating out, buying flowers, or choosing an engagement ring, soaring swipe fees drive up the price of everything U.S. consumers buy and impact what couples can afford."
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NACS Daily: Visa, Mastercard Swipe Fees Hit Record $100 Billion in 2023
According to the MPC, total swipe fees, including from debit cards, topped $172 billion, compared to $160 billion in 2022. Of that figure, more than $132 billion in swipe fees were from debit and credit cards bearing the Visa or Mastercard logos. “Once again, Main Street merchants and consumers were hit with a new record for swipe fees in 2023,” said Christine Pollack, vice president of government relations for FMI—The Food Industry Association. “Last year, Visa and Mastercard fixed the banks’ prices to the tune of more than $100 billion in credit card swipe fees. That is an awful toll for Main Street businesses and their customers to bear.”
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Convenience Store News: Visa & Mastercard Swipe Fees Hit $100B in 2023
American merchants were charged $7.5 billion more for credit cards with Visa and Mastercard logos in 2023 than they were in 2022, with fees totaling $100.77 billion by year's end. This was the first time in history that Visa and Mastercard credit card swipe fees surpassed the $100 billion mark, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition.
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Visa, Mastercard Credit Card Swipe Fees Hit Record $100 Billion for First Time in 2023, Underscoring Need for Congressional Action
American merchants were charged $7.5 billion more for credit cards with Visa and Mastercard logos in 2023 than they were in 2022 – a total of $100.77 billion. This was the first time in history that Visa and Mastercard credit card swipe fees surpassed the $100 billion mark.
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Credit Card Fees Could Swipe a Dozen Easter Eggs and Cost Consumers More Than $500 Million
Rising “swipe” fees big banks and credit card networks charge merchants to process transactions could total more than $500 million this Easter and cost the average consumer more than the price of a dozen eggs, MPC said.
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