CU & Banking Trades to Fed: Reject Interchange Fee Changes

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Members from nine financial industry trade organizations asked the Federal Reserve to reject any merchant requests for further changes to Regulation II governing debit card interchange fees. Plus, the groups stated they are in the dark as to what the proposed changes might be and demanded the Fed share those details ahead of a board of governors meeting scheduled for Oct. 25.

In a letter sent to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Friday, the nine organizations (American Bankers Association, American Association of Credit Union Leagues, Consumer Bankers Association, CUNA, Electronic Payments Coalition, Independent Community Bankers of America, Mid-Size Bank Coalition of America, NAFCU and the National Bankers Association) stated, “The merchant petitions and presentations to the Board demanding action on Regulation II are riddled with errors, misleading statements, and false comparisons that appear designed to deceive. As in the merchant groups’ litigation against the Federal Reserve on Regulation II, there is consistent cherry-picking of facts and omission of ‘inconvenient evidence’ that contradicts their advocacy efforts.”