Mastercard and Visa card fee decisions make consumers cheaper

<p class = "canvas-atom-text-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "The European Commission has announced that it has accepted Mastercard's commitments (MY) and Visa (V) to reduce interregional exchange costs as part of a legally binding commitment under the antitrust rules of the European Union. "reduce interregional exchange costs in a legally binding commitment under the antitrust rules of the European Union.

Companies will significantly reduce their multilateral interchange fees (MIFs) for payments in Europe by around 40% on average with consumption cards issued elsewhere.

"Mastercard and Visa are committed to significantly reducing the interchange fees applied to payments made in Europe with cards issued elsewhere," said Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, responsible for competition policy, in a statement .

"The commitments, which are now binding on Visa and Mastercard, will reduce the costs incurred by retailers to accept payments with cards issued outside the EEA. This decision, combined with our January 2019 decision regarding MasterCard's cross-border card payment services, will result in lower prices for European retailers who want to do business, for the ultimate benefit of all consumers. "

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When someone uses their debit or credit card in a store or online, the retailer's bank pays a commission called "multilateral interchange fee" to the cardholder's bank. Naturally, the retailer's bank transfers the fees to the retailer, who then passes them on to the end consumer.

For example, it does not matter if it's an American or a British person going to a restaurant in Paris, France, these people will have to bear these costs. Moreover, because of the regular number of fees, retailers always charge the overall costs on their products and services, which means that even those who do not use cards will see their prices go up.

<p class = "canvas-canvas-text canvas Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "The European Commission has confirmed that this tax reduction MIF"will significantly reduce costs for retailers in the European Economic Area (EEA) when they will accept payments made with cards issued outside the EEA. This should lead to lower prices for the benefit of all European consumers. ""data-reactid =" 29 "> The European Commission has confirmed that this reduction of the MIF tax"will significantly reduce costs for retailers in the European Economic Area (EEA) when they will accept payments made with cards issued outside the EEA. This should lead to lower prices for the benefit of all European consumers. "

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