Mastercard to Disclose Interchange Rates and Cap Fuel Purchase Fees

by Mike Bevel, CollectionIndustry.com

And retailers sigh a huge ?FINALLY? as MasterCard says it will start publishing its interchange rate schedule and will cap fees it charges on fuel purchases.

Retailers and trade groups have been all over MasterCard, as well as Visa, for alleged violations of anti-trust, pointing the Finicky Finger of Blame at the $26.3 billion in credit card interchange fees collected by the card issuing companies annually.

To get those guys off its back, MasterCard has agreed to publish its interchange rate schedule on its website by November 1 of this year. In the same way someone might say, ?Aunt Ruth believes elves fix her shoes each morning,? MasterCard spokesman Joshua Peirez said, ?The merchant community believes that having access to our rate schedule will provide additional transparency.?

Additionally, in a bid to make everyone happy, MasterCard will also cap fees on fuel purchases. Peirez says merchants have voiced concern about interchange fees on rapidly rising gasoline prices.