Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., went on the Congressional Record this week to call the recent settlement between Visa, MasterCard, issuing banks, and merchants over credit card swipe fees a “stunning giveaway.”
“The bottom line is that this proposed settlement does not make our credit card system better,” Durbin wrote. “Instead, it gives Visa and MasterCard free reign to carry on their anticompetitive swipe fee system with no real constraints and no legal accountability to the millions of American businesses that are forced to pay their fees. This is a stunning giveaway to Visa and MasterCard, all for a payout of a mere 2 months worth of swipe fees.”
Durbin went on to encourage merchants to “think hard about whether [the agreement] will be good for the future of our credit and debit card systems.” Indeed, if the settlement is approved in its current form, merchants will not be allowed to bring lawsuits against Visa or MasterCard in the future.
PYMNTS.com has summarized the key terms of the swipe fee settlement agreement previously.
