Even after a recent proposed $30BN settlement which aimed to lower merchant fees from Mastercard and Visa, the former still increased transaction fees last month. Between these fee increases and the settlement being far from approved, businesses may only see literal pennies on the dollar in savings in the short term.

“Most card networks publish their interchange rates twice a year, in April and October. These fees are designed to cover the costs of processing and authorizing credit or debit card transactions,” explains Eric Cohen, CEO and founder of Merchant Advocate. “An increase can occur due to several factors, all of which are weighed to determine appropriate interchange rates. These factors include operating costs, competitive landscape, regulator changes, etc.”

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