{"id":1009,"date":"2026-09-14T11:49:20","date_gmt":"2026-09-14T16:49:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.paymentconsulting.net\/Blog\/wordpress\/?p=1009"},"modified":"2026-09-14T11:49:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-14T16:49:20","slug":"merchants-level-multiple-objections-to-a-proposed-interchange-agreement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.paymentconsulting.net\/Blog\/wordpress\/?p=1009","title":{"rendered":"Merchants Level Multiple Objections to a Proposed Interchange Agreement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Merchants Level Multiple Objections to a Proposed Interchange Agreement<\/h1>\n

<\/i>John Stewart<\/a><\/span> <\/i>September 14, 2026<\/span> <\/i>Acquiring<\/a>, Credit Cards<\/a>, E-Commerce<\/a>, Law and Regulation<\/a>, Mobile Commerce<\/a>, Point-of-sale<\/a>, Pricing<\/a>, Transaction Processing<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Merchants have objected to a settlement in a long-running dispute over interchange fees, alleging the deal would hand issuers liability immunity for fees and rules. Merchants, at the same time, would receive \u201ctemporary and meager relief.\u201d On the basis of these and other objections, the merchants \u201curge(s) the court to deny final approval of this settlement.\u201d<\/p>\n

The allegations surfaced Thursday via a merchant filing related to a 21-year-old federal case in which merchants are contesting the costs imposed on them through card-acceptance fees. The latest filing sets out a detailed set of objections from 978 merchants to a final approval of the settlement \u00a0Defendants in the case, which include the big card networks and major banks, filed a proposed settlement agreement<\/a> <\/strong>in the case in November.<\/p>\n

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At the root of the merchants\u2019 latest objections is that the settlement \u201cdoesn\u2019t change anything,\u201d a spokesman for the Merchant Payments Coalition said. The proposed agreement \u201cwould grant Visa, Mastercard, and giant card-issuing banks sweeping liability immunity for their anticompetitive system of card fees and rules wile providing merchants with temporary and meager relief that is riddled with loopholes that will make the relief largely ineffective,\u201d the 48-page merchant filing alleges.<\/p>\n

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A spokesperson for the Electronic Payments Coalition, which advocates on behalf of the card industry, could not immediately be reached for comment.<\/p>\n

Specifically, the merchants allege in their latest filing the settlement leaves in place \u201ca core anticompetitive problem,\u201d which they say involves \u201cVisa and Mastercard\u2019s continuing, central role in their network cartel structure sheltering banks from market competition by fixing fee rates and transaction rules on their behalf.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The filing also objects that a 1.25% temporary rate cap for standard consumer credit cards, set by the proposed settlement<\/a><\/strong>, is \u201ceasily circumvented,\u201d as standard cards \u201crepresent a small and shrinking fraction of the market.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition for rate relief, the proposal included a surcharging provision that some observers argued would make the practice more prevalent. Some 65% of consumers said they have paid a surcharge on a card-based purchase, according to research last year by J.D. Power.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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