Press Release: Antitrust: Commissioner Kroes takes note of MasterCard’s decision to cut cross-border Multilateral Interchange Fees (MIFs) and to repeal recent scheme fee increases

European Commissioner for Competition Neelie Kroes indicated that, on the basis of information currently available, she saw no need to pursue MasterCard for non-compliance with a 2007 Commission decision that MasterCard's cross-border multilateral interchange fees (MIF) were in breach of EC Treaty rules on restrictive business practices. Following the 2007 Decision, MasterCard provisionally repealed its cross-border MIF on 12 June 2008 but increased its scheme fees from October 2008. MasterCard decided to apply a new methodology to its MIF for cross-border transactions which will result in a substantially reduced average weighted MIF level compared with that found to be in breach of EU antitrust rules. Following the new methodology, the maximum weighted average MIF per transaction will be reduced to 0.30% for consumer credit cards and to 0.20% for consumer debit cards. Moreover, MasterCard agreed to withdraw as of July 2009 the increases of its scheme fees imposed in October 2008. Finally, MasterCard agreed to change its system rules as of July 2009 in order to increase transparency and competition in the payment cards market. Implementation of these changes will be closely monitored in the coming months.

European Commission: MEMO/09/143: Antitrust: Commissioner Kroes notes MasterCard's decision to cut cross-border Multilateral Interchange Fees (MIFs) and to repeal recent scheme fee increases – frequently asked questions http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/09/143&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

European Commission: SPEECH/09/165: MasterCard cuts fees http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=SPEECH/09/165&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

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