Credit-Card Backlash Mounts as Kroger Weighs Expanding Visa Ban

Post by alkonaut » Wed, Aug 01, 2018, 7:35 AM UTC

caf wrote: post #196

smileysteve wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't buy this because it discounts the high costs of cash controls. Cash has high costs that likely make electronic forms of payment competitive. You have - Employees skimming the till; - Theft insurance for a safe, the nightly amount in the safe - Managers balancing the cash registers with change/safe - Armored trucks picking up the money (2-3 men guarding the transfer) - Banks processing the money - Employee tim…

If this was the case then merchants would happily encourage people to use cards rather than cash.

Post by alkonaut » Wed, Aug 01, 2018, 7:39 AM UTC

seszett wrote: post #140

sorenbs wrote: post #18

In Denmark we have a national payment system called Dankort. All issued Visa cards also work as Dankort. Transaction fees on Dankort is one tenth of visa, and all payment terminals default to Dankort. This saves Danish retail a lot of money while still ensuring they we can buy stuff online and when traveling using visa.

I think most countries have that. CB in France, Interac in Canada, Bancontact in Belgium, etc. But that concept sounds like it wouldn't fare well in the US.

Post by function_seven » Wed, Aug 01, 2018, 7:48 AM UTC

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #191

function_seven wrote: post #188

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Visa Signature" is used in the interchange fee schedule [1] to set the price. It's not just a marketing term (though obviously that, too). If you look at the four columns in section C, there are four rates. Signature Preferred, Signature, Traditional, and "All Other". If I sign up for merchant card processing, and select a plan that varies the rate I pay based on card, then I'm given a fee schedule like this [2]. Th…

This is one example. I gave a counterexample. Usually, branding matches to card type. But not always. The question was can they be charged differently, and the answer is yes.

Post by drawnwren » Wed, Aug 01, 2018, 8:02 AM UTC

finaliteration wrote: post #119

incidentnumber wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aren't these typically reloaded via a credit card?

Yes. But compare one $25 transaction to six $4 ones over a large population, and even the per-transaction fees alone seem like a pretty decent savings.

Post by alkonaut » Wed, Aug 01, 2018, 8:11 AM UTC

llewey wrote: post #208

alkonaut wrote: post #201

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Outside the US merchants almost invariably encourage the use of cards. Zero places here are cash only (not even a hot dog stand) but tons are explicitly cash free. [edit: in some places.] The big savings come when you have zero cash to deal with. Then you have no counting/change/armed transport/security issues at all.

That is definitely not true in Germany. There were many places that only accepted cash while I lived there. I just spent 2 weeks in Spain and there were many places I tried to eat that were cash ø ly. In Chinatown in London, as well, many places are cash only. "outside the US" is a big place, be careful to be more specific.