Live data from Hacker News

Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

ca.news.yahoo.com

291–300 of 304 posts

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#291

Visa and Mastercard don't keep much of interchange at all and never have. The vast majority is paid to issuing banks to pay for loan origination, fraud and, most significantly, to return in the form of cash back or points. These networks charge 0.2% for debit and 0.3% for credit in Europe as per regulation, you just don't get rewards there. Kinda sounds like they're just going to squeeze issuing banks. Cash back and…

Credit card reward systems are one of the dumbest ideas that humanity has invented. It's amazing/terrifying that it's legal.

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#292

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The parent is likely referring to AMEX cards, which is the only issuer that enforces it as a global policy. And hence why in developing countries only luxury and ultra-luxury establishments accept AMEX cards.

It's not a global policy. It's regional.

Source?

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#293
post #272

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It wouldn't be difficult at all. Price stickers are printed/managed in store often enough. Any company that allows you to purchase online already had to deal with differing sales tax, and everything is owned by like one company right now anyway so they already have systems in place to deal with differing tax rules in different states.

But it's not just states. In California (and I guess many other places) towns in the same country can have different tax rates. Sure price stickers is not an unsolvable issue but advertising prices including tax publicaclly would be almost impossible. > everything is owned by like one company right now anyway so they already have systems in place to deal with differing tax rules in different states. Yeah I agree it w…

Why is calculating the price with correct tax possible but not the advertising of that price? What is the physical bottleneck?

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#294
post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

These numbers are not public, but the grapevine is that visa/mastercard keeps about a third of all interchange. Credit card rewards are a regressive tax on the poor -- literally, only those like us here on HN with good credit can get 2% cashback on everything, the rest who pay with debit/cash effectively subsidise our 2% discount. I enjoy my 2% cashback, but really would rather see a world where, like the EU, interch…

Yes, I'd like to see a world without silly credit card cashbacks, too. And ideally they'd slay that beast by removing regulations, not by piling more on top. > I don't know what's the solution here. I'm weary of government intervention in capping prices, but I'm not sure what's the alternative here -- force each card to be available over multiple networks and for them to bid the interchange per transaction? Durbin am…

I don't see why everyone in thread is so allergic to regulating it. I vote for the representatives I do precisely because I want these types of practices controlled.

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#295
post #272

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But it's not just states. In California (and I guess many other places) towns in the same country can have different tax rates. Sure price stickers is not an unsolvable issue but advertising prices including tax publicaclly would be almost impossible. > everything is owned by like one company right now anyway so they already have systems in place to deal with differing tax rules in different states. Yeah I agree it w…

Why is calculating the price with correct tax possible but not the advertising of that price? What is the physical bottleneck?

GP has it wrong. It's entirely physically possible to advertise prices including tax, but it's illegal to do so.

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#296
post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a perpetuated lie based on half-information. It is technically correct. If you are comparing a place that only takes cash, and a place that only takes plastic. This place does not exist. This thing exists, is called a vending machine, and it is indeed cheaper for my bag of chips to be cashless. If a business takes both cash and cards, allowing cards In Addition to already taking cash, does not cost more. It c…

What is your argument here? I believe the oft-cited reason cash is more expensive is primarily due to shrinkage, which is on the same order as the credit card fees (unless you’re a family-run business or have only amazingly trustworthy employees). Cash-only discounts can be just as easily explained by the “flexibility” cash provides — you can’t assume the conclusion as a fact. The fact that most cash discounts are gr…

What I am saying, is what I said. Which has little to do with that to which you are replying. Please read it, and reply to that if you so choose.

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#297

Visa and Mastercard don't keep much of interchange at all and never have. The vast majority is paid to issuing banks to pay for loan origination, fraud and, most significantly, to return in the form of cash back or points. These networks charge 0.2% for debit and 0.3% for credit in Europe as per regulation, you just don't get rewards there. Kinda sounds like they're just going to squeeze issuing banks. Cash back and…

How much is it for the EC card? Probably zero?

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#299

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is your argument here? I believe the oft-cited reason cash is more expensive is primarily due to shrinkage, which is on the same order as the credit card fees (unless you’re a family-run business or have only amazingly trustworthy employees). Cash-only discounts can be just as easily explained by the “flexibility” cash provides — you can’t assume the conclusion as a fact. The fact that most cash discounts are gr…

What I am saying, is what I said. Which has little to do with that to which you are replying. Please read it, and reply to that if you so choose.

You just asserted it was a lie, but didn’t say why. I want to know how you are refuting the “cashless is cheaper” argument? All of the business owners I know value cash only for the ability to declare a bit less, the fees are a wash with the complexity of dealing with cash. If you are arguing that there is another reason it’s cheaper but not saying how — please tell us! Or are you talking about the every-day, minor tax fraud that makes it cheaper?

Re: Visa and Mastercard agree to lower average credit card interchange fee below 1%

#300
post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm in the UK and I have had (still have) rewards on MC, Visa and Amex. This was the case when we were still in the EU as well.

As a counter point, I’ve been here for fifteen years and never have.

I and others have shown that such cards exist, correcting the person who I replied to, who claimed they did not.
Post reply on HN