A coalition of credit unions and other card issuers plan an advertising campaign in advance of a coming legislative fight on card interchange, according to a statement from NAFCU, one of the coalition members.

The Senate is expected to take up legislation that reform credit card interest rates and practices later this week. A coalition of merchant groups is expected to try to attach a measure addressing credit card interchange to that piece of legislation and the issuer group, the Electronic Payments Coalition, hopes the ad campaign will counter that effort.

"The retailers' continued claims that their position on interchange fees is pro-consumer is a poorly disguised shell game," said NAFCU Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Dan Berger. "They are simply seeking to increase their own bottom line, and not looking out for consumers."

"Today, credit unions can offer members credit cards at reasonable rates. Interchange fees are necessary to cover the costs of a number of functions related to the credit card accounts, including card replacements in the case of retailer data breaches or identity theft, which continue to rise," Berger said.

"In this tight credit market, credit unions are a valuable resource of credit for individuals and small businesses," he added. "Members and consumers will suffer if government price controls are established on interchange fees. Interchange fees on credit cards ensure merchants and retailers get paid, while credit unions assume all of the risk associated with the sales transaction."