Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) questioned whether EMV technology is adequately protecting competition and consumers, according to a letter the senator sent to the chairman of industry group EMVCo.

The letter, dated March 17 and addressed to EMVCo Executive Committee Chairman Mike Matan, included a list of 10 questions that asked, among other things, about the influence of foreign card networks, the apparent lack of merchant and small payment network representation on EMVCo leadership teams, competition with smaller networks and whether EMVCo believes chip and PIN authentication should be discontinued in non-U.S. markets.

“Magnetic stripe debit and credit cards have long been a key vulnerability that has put consumers' sensitive financial information at risk,” Durbin said in a statement. “Chip technology is designed to be safer and more secure for customers, but there are significant questions about whether the deployment of this technology in the United States is adequately protecting competition and consumers. Today I am seeking answers from EMVCo, an organization owned by six giant card networks that sets the rules for chip card technology. I hope their answers will help clarify how security and competition in the U.S. payment card market can be further improved.”

EMVCo was formed in February 1999 by Europay International, MasterCard and Visa to manage EMV specifications for EMV chips and tokenization. Sen. Durbin is the namesake of the Dodd-Frank Act's Durbin Amendment, which took effect in 2011 and capped debit interchange fees in an effort to reduce the cost of accepting card payments.

Durbin's recent letter also asked for details about the decision-making authority of card networks JCB and UnionPay, which are two of EMVCo's six member organizations; the others include American Express, Discover, MasterCard and Visa. JCB is based in Tokyo, Japan; UnionPay is a Chinese bank card association.

Durbin also asked whether the two networks share non-public information about EMVCo's specifications, certification processes or other operations with the Chinese or Japanese governments.

Additionally, Durbin asked why smaller payment networks and merchants are relegated to associate status at EMVCo, a status he said appears to be only advisory in nature.

“EMVCo does not appear to provide other U.S. stakeholders in the electronic payment system with any meaningful decision-making authority in the development of its specifications or certification processes,” he said.

Competition was also a topic of inquiry. Durbin asked whether all U.S. payment networks have access to EMVCo's technical specs at the same time, as well as whether EMVCo's six major card networks picked up market share after the EMV liability shift on Oct. 1, 2015.

“In light of the enormous influence EMVCo wields over the deployment of EMV technology in the United States, it is important for lawmakers to have a clear picture of how EMVCo operates and how its work affects American businesses and consumers,” the letter said.

EMVCo has 30 days to respond.

Instant Insights /

Durbin Scrutinizes EMV Group&rsquo;s Practices

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