Credit Unions Today: Megabank Profits Fuel Renewed Push For Credit Card Swipe Fee Reform
With three of the nation's largest credit card issuing banks reporting billions of dollars in third-quarter profits, including a 40% earnings increase at Citigroup, the Merchants Payments Coalition (MPC) is renewing its call for Congress to pass legislation aimed at reducing credit card swipe fees. The coalition pointed to the earnings reports as evidence that financial institutions and card networks continue to profit handsomely while merchants and consumers face rising payment processing costs. “Another quarter, another round of multibillion-dollar profits for the megabanks, paid for in part by the swipe fees merchants and their customers are charged at every checkout,” MPC Executive Committee member and National Association of Convenience Stores General Counsel Doug Kantor said. “Americans should have more money to spend, but they are getting squeezed by Visa and Mastercard operating the credit card industry as two big cartels. Their profits show the ripoffs of Americans just keep on coming.”
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Entrepreneuer: 5 Things to Ask Your Credit Card Processor Before Signing a Contract
In 2009, U.S. merchants paid $62.1 billion to accept credit and debit cards. In 2025, they paid $198.25 billion, according to Nilson Report figures published by the Merchants Payments Coalition.
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StartBusinessByState: Credit Card Swipe Fees on Sales Tax by State (2026): Costs and Bills to Stop Them
Swipe fees hit a record $198.25 billion in 2025, up 5.9% from 2024, according to the Nilson Report as cited by the Merchants Payments Coalition.
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Washington Times: Every credit card swipe adds a hidden fee to your bill. Congress wants to change that
The Merchants Payments Coalition, a trade association of retail groups, notes that swipe fee revenues soared from $62.1 billion in 2010 to a record $198.25 billion last year, as more Americans shopped online and used credit for most purchases. “Affordability is big on everyone’s agenda this year, and there’s nothing Congress could do to lower prices faster than this legislation,” said Doug Kantor, a coalition committee member and general counsel for the National Association of Convenience Stores.
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Progressive Grocer: If Marshall loses his Senate race, the legislation will lose both of its prime cosponsors, although the bill's proponents say the legislation will live on. Doug Kantor, National Association of Convenience Stores general counsel and mem
“The underlying problem hasn't disappeared simply because NCUA issued a rule saying otherwise,” said Doug Kantor, an MPC Executive Committee member and general counsel of the National Association of Convenience Stores. “Visa and Mastercard still set these fees.”
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American Banker: How credit cards are playing into the Kansas Senate race
If Marshall loses his Senate race, the legislation will lose both of its prime cosponsors, although the bill's proponents say the legislation will live on. Doug Kantor, National Association of Convenience Stores general counsel and member at the Merchants Payments Coalition, said that there's enough momentum for the bill that it'll pick up new lawmaker advocates. And if Democrats retake the Senate and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., takes the gavel at the Senate Banking Committee, the CCCA would be one of only a handful of legislative issues where she and Trump agree. "Credit card reforms are definitely within the circle where both of those individuals see the problems and agree there ought to be changes," Kantor said. "Republicans are much more willing to take on big companies, big interests, it's part of how things have shifted in the Trump era."
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Digital Transactions: A Judge’s Ruling Re-Ignites a Fierce Battle Over Interchange
The move to exempt federal credit unions drew a strong rebuke Wednesday from the Merchants Payments Coalition, a group that lobbies on behalf of retailers on payments matters. “The NCUA has clearly exceeded its authority, and we expect the court will be overruled in an appeal or subsequent case,” said Doug Kantor, an MPC executive committee member. “States can and should protect their local businesses and consumers from abusive, unfair practices by credit unions and banks.”
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Milwaukee Sentinel Journal: Why you may see a service fee on your We Energies bill and how to avoid it
Many retailers, like those represented by the Merchants Payment Coalition, have complained that card processing fees are too costly for them, and ultimately, consumers. The average American family pays $1,200 in swipe fees each year, (MPC Executive Committee member Doug) Kantor said, referencing the coalition's 2025 report. "These fees are outrageously high, and they increase the prices that we pay for everything we buy."
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Payment Industry Intelligence: US Merchants mount fresh challenge to Visa-Mastercard swipe fee settlement
The Merchant Payments Coalition argues the latest proposal remains inadequate, claiming that card fees have risen sharply since the pandemic and represent one of retailers’ largest operating expenses after labour.
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Law360: Walmart, Retail Groups Doubt Value Of $200B Swipe Fee Deal
The Merchant Payments Coalition said in a statement, "We object to this proposed settlement because it would grant Visa, Mastercard and giant card-issuing banks sweeping liability immunity for their anticompetitive system of card fees and rules while providing merchants with temporary and meager relief that is riddled with loopholes that will make the relief largely ineffective."
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