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11 Dec 2023

It has been reported that The Cycle Show, the major industry event held at London's Alexandra Palace and which this year celebrated its 20th anniversary, has fallen victim to the challenging...

30 Nov 2023

New research from Lime entitled “Tackling the Gender Pedal Gap” has most women facing barriers to cycling, including poorly lit streets and isolated routes. The report claims...

27 Nov 2023

Torq Zone Academy, a leading institution of vocational training in South Africa, has been re-accredited by the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO), for another five years, to offer...

27 Nov 2023

Cycling UK has released its annual 100 Women in Cycling list for 2023, the seventh such initiative to celebrate women across the British cycling community and those who inspire others to cycle.

27 Nov 2023

The former commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Lord Hogan-Howe, has said number plates should be introduced on the back of bikes to stop so many cyclists being a danger on...

23 Nov 2023

Retail sector leaders have expressed a range of concerns, from taxation to business rates, following the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement this week.

15 Nov 2023

The British Independent Retailers Association (BIRA), which works with over 6,000 independent businesses of all sizes across the UK, has outlined its expectations from the government...

14 Nov 2023

ACT member and Cytech-accredited Stonehaven shop Bike Remedy has been given permission to expand its offering by building a bike shelter and tool station outside its premises.

14 Nov 2023

As more people turn to cycling, more jobs are being created in the industry, according to an article in The Sun.

14 Nov 2023

Cytech Training Scotland, proudly operated by Bike for Good, is thrilled to celebrate a year of remarkable achievements in providing top-notch Cytech bicycle maintenance training. Over the past...

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Business bodies slam “startling rise in the cost of accepting cards” for small businesses

Posted on in Business News , Cycles News

A lobby group has warned of the “startling rise in the cost of accepting cards” for small businesses after the European chief of Mastercard defended the fees it levies on merchants.

Blue Mastercard



Interchange fees, which are charged to merchants and paid to the card issuing bank and payment network, have climbed sharply in recent years, and squeezed merchants.

The price hikes have incurred the anger of business organisations who have argued it amounts to a tax on card payments.

The British Retail Consortium, Federation of Small Businesses, and lobby group Coadec were among groups to launch an ‘Axe the Card Tax’ campaign last year calling for regulators to step into the market in the UK and reduce fees.

However the European president of Mastercard, Mark Barnett, has defended the current fee structure.
“We believe interchange is the right mechanism for everybody, sharing the costs and benefits of the payment system,” he told the Financial Times. “We think it represents incredibly good value.”

The comments have come under fire from start-up lobby group Coadec however, which has previously slammed the ‘stealth card tax’ and the monopoly of Visa and Mastercard. The group’s analysis suggests that card processing fees have risen 600 per cent over the past eight years.
“Coadec is part of the Axe the Card Tax campaign because of the startling rise in the cost of accepting cards,” Luke Kosky, fintech policy lead at Coadec told City A.M.

“Interchange fees themselves represent great value for the banks – that is their purpose. But the Government has not yet worked out if the current cap levels are right for the UK where 90 per cent of retail sales are on cards. Such a review is only possible post-Brexit.”

The Payment Systems Regulator is currently conducting a market review of the fees paid to card payment networks, with which Mastercard is co-operating.

Coadec called for alternative ways of paying to be explored to take the pressure off retailers via alternatives like “open banking payments, or vital staples like cash.”

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