WASHINGTON, DC — Electronic Payments Coalition (EPC) Executive Chairman Richard Hunt issued the following statement after the court’s preliminary approval of the small business credit card agreement between Visa, Mastercard, and merchants. The agreement guaranteed lower processing rates along with other requested concessions in the long-running interchange litigation. In total, the agreement amounts to approximately $200+ billion over eight years.
“This small business credit card agreement delivers nearly a quarter trillion dollars in relief. It is a guaranteed win for Main Street and provides meaningful solutions for businesses and consumers.
“Unfortunately, corporate mega-stores, their lobbyists, and their lawyers want to block this agreement to push untested, unworkable mandates that only further pad their profits.
“Corporate megastores should support this free-market, private-sector agreement.”
Note: The agreement reached by Visa, Mastercard, and merchants allows: Merchants more options to surcharge Visa and Mastercard credit cardholders; Merchants to accept cards based on card category; and A reduction of current interchange rates.
Walmart objected to the first agreement reached in March 2024, claiming small businesses had “traded away the interests of large national merchants for relief that is worthless to the members with the most at stake in this litigation.”
Mega-stores are continuing to push the flawed Durbin-Marshall credit card mandates to pad their profits. The Congressional Research Service found that “it is unlikely a small business would be aware of a smaller network” under proposed routing mandates, and concluded “it is unclear who would benefit.” A University of Miami study found the largest U.S. retailers would effectively receive a transfer of approximately $2.9 billion under the legislation, while “small businesses would save significantly less, if anything.”
