Retail NZ Response To Commerce Commission Interchange Fee Decision

Retail NZ welcomes the Commerce Commission’s decision on interchange fee regulation for the Mastercard and Visa networks.

“Retail payments are a contentious area for retail businesses. We have called for changes in the system, to make it easier for retailers to understand and to enable them to provide better customer experiences and for lower fees” Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young says.

“While the Commerce Commission has announced interchange fee caps for domestic and international debit and credit card transactions, we are disappointed that commercial credit cards and prepaid cards are not currently included in the new pricing standards. This was a move that Retail NZ called for in our submission to the Commission’s consultation last year, saying the focus on Mastercard and Visa was too narrow and only partially addressed the issues faced by retailers and the flow-on effects for customers”, Ms Young says.

Retail NZ supported the Commerce Commission’s proposal to set lower fee caps for the Interchange component of the payments system.

However, interchange fees account for a little over half the total cost of Merchant Service Fees (MSF) and retailers have concerns about the cost of other components. A reduction in the interchange fees alone will not address the overall costs that retailers pay via MSF. In our submission, we called for the Commission to regulate the total MSF to provide ongoing certainty for our members.

In addition, Retail NZ is welcoming the Commerce Commission’s intention to do further work on regulating surcharges to provide a level playing field for all retailers and consumers.

“We will be working with Retail NZ members to respond appropriately to today’s decision,” Ms Young says.

For further information or to set up an interview with Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young, please contact Carolyn on 021 449 452.

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