PURCHASE, N.Y. – MasterCard on Wednesday reported its third quarter profits soared 38% to $717 million, as a growing number of cardholders continue to favor debit over credit card transactions.
MasterCard, which led the charge against new caps on new debit fees, reported its U.S. credit card transactions grew by 7% in the third quarter, while its debit transactions rose by 24%. As a result, net income for the third quarter surged 27% to $1.8 billion.
For the first three quarters of the year MasterCard reported a 22% rise in revenues to $5 billion, and a 32% surge in profits to $1.9 billion.
MasterCard, Visa and the banks and credit unions that own the two card companies were the leading opponents of the new caps on debit fees enacted by the Federal Reserve.
