MasterCard accused of overcharging by EU
10/07/2015
MasterCard has been accused of overcharging consumers by adding fees when cards are issued outside the European Union (EU) and then used in EU countries.
European Union officials have claimed that the “interchange” fees, which are the fees that retailers pay banks to process card payments, harm consumers and retailers in the EU, and are “unjustified”. The officials have voiced concerns that MasterCard violates competition rules by requiring retailers to pay artificially inflated fees to process credit card transactions.
The practice leads to higher prices for retailers in the EU, and this increase is then passed onto consumers.
A spokesperson for the EU watchdog said:
"As these inter-regional fees represent hundreds of millions of euros each year, the Commission is concerned that these high inter-regional fees increase prices for retailers and may in turn lead to higher prices for products and services for all consumers, and not only those using cards issued outside the EU or paying with cards."
MasterCard is now working with the European Commission on the issue, and are preparing a formal response. A spokesperson for MasterCard said:
"Throughout this procedure we have kept the needs of both consumers and merchants in mind."
The accusations from the EU are part of a long-running investigation by the antitrust watchdog. The EU is able to apply a fine for antitrust infringements of up to 10% of the company’s annual sales.
A separate investigation into Visa's interchange fees is also being carried out by the EU.
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