Credit union leaders are voicing strong opposition to a Senate move to attach the controversial Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA) to the GENIUS Act, legislation that would regulate stablecoins, warning that the amendment would harm consumers, small businesses and local financial institutions.
“This interchange language has no place in the GENIUS Act,” Jim Nussle, president/CEO of America’s Credit Unions, said in a statement issued Tuesday night. “It would drive up costs for Main Street America — consumers, small businesses and small financial institutions, including credit unions.”
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The proposed amendment, filed by Senators Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) and Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), would require credit cards issued by banks with over $100 billion in assets to be compatible with at least two unaffiliated payment networks. While the sponsors said the change will enhance competition and lower merchant fees, credit unions argued it would create significant disruption for smaller financial institutions and undermine consumers’ access to credit.
“The disruption to the credit card payment system would negatively affect consumers’ access to needed credit and services they depend on,” Nussle said. “This amendment is a poison pill to the legislation, and we urge Senators to oppose it as it would hurt hardworking Americans.”
Swipe fees, charges paid by merchants to card-issuing banks for processing credit transactions, hit a record $187.2 billion in 2024, up 70% since the pandemic. The National Retail Federation and other merchant groups support the CCCA, saying it could save businesses and consumers $17 billion annually. However, credit union advocates argued the bill targets a narrow problem in a way that could have broad, unintended effects.
Though the legislation exempts credit unions under $100 billion in assets, industry leaders warned that the impact on payment networks and market dynamics would ripple across the entire credit union system, reducing flexibility and increasing costs.
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
