WASHINGTON (AP) — Retailers are paying significantly less every time a customer swipes a debit card under a rule capping the fees that banks are allowed to charge.
The Federal Reserve says in a new report Tuesday that the average fee paid by merchants for debit card transactions covered by the rule was 24 cents in the fourth quarter of 2011. That compares with an average of 43 cents before the Fed’s rule took effect Oct. 1.
The rule was mandated under the 2010 financial overhaul law. For most transactions, banks can charge merchants a maximum 21 cents for each debit card transaction plus an additional 0.05 percent of the purchase price to cover fraud protection costs.
Banks with less than $10 billion in assets aren’t subject to the cap.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Retailers are paying significantly less every time a customer swipes a debit card under a rule capping the fees that banks are allowed to charge.
The Federal Reserve says in a new report Tuesday that the average fee paid by merchants for debit card transactions covered by the rule was 24 cents in the fourth quarter of 2011. That compares with an average of 43 cents before the Fed’s rule took effect Oct. 1.
The rule was mandated under the 2010 financial overhaul law. For most transactions, banks can charge merchants a maximum 21 cents for each debit card transaction plus an additional 0.05 percent of the purchase price to cover fraud protection costs.
Banks with less than $10 billion in assets aren’t subject to the cap.