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Electronic Payments Coalition |

Defense Credit Union Council Joins Financial Services Coalition In Sending Joint Letter to House Leaders Opposing Harmful Credit Card Routing Legislation

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Defense Credit Union Council joined ten other trade associations representing the entire financial services industry including the American Bankers Association, Association of Military Banks of America, Bank Policy Institute, Consumer Bankers Association, Credit Union National Association, Electronic Payments Coalition, Independent Community Bankers of America, Mid-Sized Bank Coalition of America, National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions, and National Bankers Association in sending a joint letter to House leaders opposing legislation (H.R. 3881) by Representatives Lance Gooden (R-TX) and Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) creating new credit card routing mandates that would eliminate funding for popular credit card rewards programs, weaken cybersecurity protections, and reduce access to credit for those who need it the most. The full letter to House leadership is copied below.
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Electronic Payments Coalition |

Financial Services Coalition Sends Joint Letter to Senate Leaders Opposing Harmful Credit Card Routing Legislation

WASHINGTON, DC – Ten trade associations representing the financial services industry including the American Bankers Association, Association of Military Banks of America, Bank Policy Institute, Consumer Bankers Association, Credit Union National Association, Electronic Payments Coalition, Independent Community Bankers of America, Mid-Sized Bank Coalition of America, National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions, and National Bankers Association, sent a joint letter to Senate leaders opposing legislation (S.1838) by Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) creating new credit card routing mandates that would eliminate funding for popular credit cards rewards programs, weaken cybersecurity protections, and reduce access to credit for those who need it the most.
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Electronic Payments Coalition |

Why the ‘Big-Box Bill’ Failed in the 117th Congress

On June 7th, 2023, Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Roger Marshall (R-KS), J.D. Vance (R-OH), and Peter Welch (D-VT) reintroduced legislation that would create new credit card routing mandates allowing big-box retailers to rake in billions of dollars in extra revenue at the expense of consumers, small businesses, and small financial institutions. Despite vigorous lobbying from big-box retailers and their allies, this legislation was deeply unpopular when it was first introduced in 2022—among both Democrats and Republicans. This “Big-Box Bill” would hurt consumers by increasing costs, weakening payment security, harming small financial institutions, reducing access to credit for those who need it the most, and ending popular credit card rewards programs. “This bill is nothing but a classic bait-and-switch from big-box retailers. Despite aggressive lobbying efforts from Walmart, Target, Kroger, and others, this bill saw no meaningful activity in either the Senate or the House when it was previously introduced last year. Legislators see this bill for what it is: a handout for the big-box stores at the expense of consumers, small businesses, and small financial institutions.” ­– Aaron Stetter, Executive Director of the Electronic Payments Coalition A one-pager explaining why the big-box bill failed in 2022 can be found copied
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Electronic Payments Coalition |

Myth vs. Fact: Correcting the NYT Op-ed on Credit Card Rewards

On March 4, 2023, The New York Times published an op-ed attacking rewards credit cards, entitled “The Dirty Little Secret of Credit Card Rewards Programs.” The op-ed makes several misleading claims about credit card rewards, which are consistently repeated by merchant and retail special interest groups that are funded by mega-retailers like Walmart and Target. These claims have been addressed below.
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Electronic Payments Coalition |

Why The So-Called Credit Card Competition Act of 2022 Failed

Despite vigorous lobbying from the merchant community and their allies, the falsely named Credit Card Competition Act of 2022 was deeply unpopular legislation—among both Democrats and Republicans. This legislation would have hurt consumers by increasing costs, weakening payment security, harming small financial institutions, reducing access to credit for those who need it the most, and ending popular credit card rewards programs.
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Electronic Payments Coalition |

EPC Q4 2022 Data Dashboard

Today, the Electronic Payments Coalition (EPC) released its 2022 Q4 Data Dashboard, providing a quarterly update on various data related to the credit and debit card system, including interchange and merchant discount rates, holiday spending, and consumer stress. This quarter’s Dashboard features the increase in Card-Not-Present (CNP) fraud alongside the growing popularity of electronic payments, especially amid the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. 
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