U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and lead sponsor of the Credit Card Competition Act, released the following statement on a recent proposed settlement between Visa and Mastercard and the merchants. The settlement comes after two decades of class-action litigation over swipe fees that merchants pay to Visa, Mastercard, and the banks.
“As Americans are trying to make ends meet, the biggest Wall Street banks, Visa, and Mastercard are lining their pockets by charging outrageous swipe fees on each credit card transaction. Reducing the cost of swipe fees and allowing merchants more choice in which cards they accept should be welcome news, however, I believe this settlement falls short. This deal provides only temporary concessions and the ability for Visa and Mastercard to change the rules as they go.
“A true solution to ever increasing swipe fees is to pass my bipartisan, bicameral legislation—the Credit Card Competition Act—to enhance competition between credit card networks and ultimately lower costs for small businesses and consumers. My bill would help reduce the swipe fees that are crushing small businesses and costing American families an extra $1,200 each year. That’s the kind of help American consumers and Main Street merchants need.”