Digital Transactions: An Injunction Against Illinois’s Interchange Act Leaves Both Sides Claiming Victory
“The law will go forward with respect to Visa and Mastercard,” says Doug Kantor, (MPC Executive Committee member and) general counsel for the National Association of Convenience Stores, which earlier this year petitioned the court to join the IIFPA lawsuit as a defendant. “There will be another hearing and maybe some appeals, but for now it is clear Visa and Mastercard, which set interchange rates, will have to comply with the law,” when it goes into effect next July.
READ MORE +
Law360: Banks, Not Credit Cos., Can Duck New Ill. Fee Law For Now
The Merchants Payments Coalition also issued a statement celebrating the ruling Friday and noting that three of its member associations have asked to join the suit. MPC Executive Committee member Doug Kantor said in the statement, "Illinois small businesses and their customers, along with workers who depend on tips, will benefit from protection against Visa and Mastercard's abusive swipe fees under this law." "The judge agreed that Visa and Mastercard cannot burden businesses and consumers with fees on taxes and tips," said Kantor, who's also the general counsel for the National Association of Convenience Stores. "The card industry will still collect billions in swipe fees in Illinois alone under this law, but it is a key first step in bringing swipe fees under control. We look forward to the law taking effect against Visa and Mastercard in July."
READ MORE +
Merchants Welcome Ruling That Visa and Mastercard Must Comply with Illinois Ban on Swipe Fees on Sales Tax
MPC welcomed a judge’s ruling that credit card payment networks like Visa and Mastercard must comply with Illinois’ ban on swipe fees on sales tax and tips.
READ MORE +
Digital Transactions: The ABA’s Letter to the Fed Is the Latest Salvo in the Battle Over Debit Card Interchange
But merchants have long argued the Durbin cap is too high, and would remain so even with the proposed reduction. In a comment letter it sent to the Fed in May, the Merchants Payments Coalition, which lobbies on behalf of retailers on payments policy, contended the proposal would cut banks’ allowable interchange by “less than a third even though banks’ average cost of processing a transaction has fallen by nearly 50%–from 7.7 cents just before the current rate was set to 3.9 cents as of 2021.”
READ MORE +
RV Pro: OHI, Campground Leaders To Advocate for Credit Card Legislation
Next week, members of OHI (Outdoor Hospitality Industry) leadership along with 14 campground members from across the country will join forces with the Merchant Payments Coalition in Washington, D.C., to advocate on Capitol Hill for the Credit Card Competition Act – legislation that will provide competition in the credit card swipe fees marketplace and ultimately save small businesses like RV parks and campgrounds thousands of dollars.
READ MORE +
Forbes: Tariffs May Be an Inflation Worry But So Are Credit Card Processing Fees, Some Say
While many Americans worry about tariffs potentially boosting inflation, merchants continue to warn of a cost increase that's already certain: credit card swipe fees. Swipe fees are often merchants’ second largest expense after labor and eventually get passed down to consumers, experts said. They already cost the average household more than $1,100 annually, up from $900 in 2021, and will continue to climb unless Congress acts, according to the National Retail Federation. While consumer prices have risen about 20% since the pandemic, swipe fees have increased by 50% and hit a record $172 billion in 2023, the Merchant Payments Coalition estimates.
READ MORE +
The Economist: Credit-card fees
Letter to the editor from MPC Executive Committee member and National Association of Convenience Stores General Counsel Doug Kantor says, "The conclusion in a Free exchange column (November 23rd) that market competition is the best way to tackle the harm to consumers from high credit-card swipe fees was right on the money. In testimony I recently gave to the Senate Judiciary Committee I said that such legislation would bring significant benefits to consumers and the economy. And because credit cards are so profitable for banks, rewards for consumers wouldn’t change much."
READ MORE +
Convenience Store News: Credit Card Fees Could Add $20B-Plus to Holiday Spending Tab
"Inflation is coming down but swipe fees keep going up, taking a bigger slice out of what it takes to put presents under the tree," said Stephanie Martz, MPC executive committee member and National Retail Federation (NRF) chief administrative officer and general counsel. "With swipe fees higher here than in other countries, our children get fewer presents for the money than kids in Great Britain, France or even China. The best present Congress can give children this year is passage of the Credit Card Competition Act."
READ MORE +
USA Today: Tariffs may be an inflation worry but so are credit card processing fees, some say
While consumer prices have risen about 20% since the pandemic, swipe fees have increased by 50% and hit a record $172 billion in 2023, the Merchant Payments Coalition estimates. “Inflation is coming down, but swipe fees keep going up, taking a bigger slice out of what it takes to put presents under the tree,” said Stephanie Martz, MPC executive committee member and NRF chief administrative officer and general counsel, in a statement last week.
READ MORE +
Supply Chain Brain: Businesses Face $20B in 'Swipe Fees' from Holiday Shopping Season
The Merchant Payments Coalition (MPC) estimates that swipe fees have increased by 50% since the pandemic, and hit a record $172 billion in 2023. The MPC further notes that swipe fees represent the highest operating cost for a business after labor, often leading to increased prices for customers. “Inflation is coming down but swipe fees keep going up, taking a bigger slice out of what it takes to put presents under the tree,” MPC executive committee member Stephanie Martz said in a December 4 news release urging Congress to pass the CCCA. "With swipe fees higher here than in other countries, our children get fewer presents for the money than kids in Great Britain, France or even China.
READ MORE +