Mastercard CEO slams proposals to alter swipe fees

Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

Congress and the Federal Reserve are considering several updates to their rules for card fees, drawing the ire of Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach.

During Mastercard's earnings call on Thursday, Miebach weighed in on the Credit Card Competition Act, the potential lowering of the cap on swipe fees and an extension of existing debit network routing rules to include online payments.

Miebach expressed his opposition to the regulations, calling the CCCA, for example, "a misguided proposal and misguided legislation."

For the quarter ending September 30, Mastercard reported net revenue of $6.5 billion, up 11% from the prior year's $5.85 billion. Earnings per share were $3.39, up 24% from about $2.73 the prior year. Analysts from Zacks Investment Research projected EPS of $3.21 per share, and Mastercard's revenue report was in line with analysts projections. Mastercard also reported its value-added services increased by 17%, driven by the growth of the card network's fraud prevention, consulting and marketing services. 

The fight over card network fees

The government's proposals mostly deal with how payment fees are levied, changing rules in a manner that theoretically would erode the major card networks' ability to set prices. 

The Credit Card Competition Act is sponsored by Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., who recently called for a vote by the end of the year. The CCCA would require credit card issuing banks with assets over $100 billion to offer two options to route transactions, with at least one of those options being a network that is not Visa or Mastercard — making the network routing rules for credit cards the same as they are for debit cards. 

The bill's supporters say it would generate competition that will lower card fees. In an American Banker op-ed, Doug Kantor, general counsel of the National Association of Convenience Stores, said: "The answer [to high fees] is to pass legislation that fixes the broken credit card market by requiring big banks and giant card networks to compete the same way small businesses do every day."

Opponents say the changes could reduce card protections. In another American Banker op-ed, Elizabeth Gore, president and co-founder of small-business fintech Hello Alice, said the bill would "line the pockets" of megaretailers who are unlikely to pass savings on to the consumer. 

"This [bill] is not good for consumers, and not good for smaller merchants or for those driving large rewards programs," Miebach said. 

The Federal Reserve this week also proposed cutting the cap on interchange fees that banks can charge for debit transactions. The Fed said a reduction in overall costs for authorization clearing and settlement cleared the way to lower the interchange cap.

Proponents say the action creates competition and contains fees. Opponents include Fed Governor Michelle Bowman, who wrote a dissenting opinion, saying the Fed did not address concerns about costs of compliance, particularly for community banks. 

"Price caps drive market distortions and it's not a good thing for consumers or merchants," Miebach said.

The Federal Reserve last year clarified Regulation II of the Dodd-Frank Act to say it includes e-commerce transactions, again requiring a routing network beyond Visa and Mastercard. Reg II has been in effect since 2011, and the clarification regarding online payments went into effect in July.

Visa CEO Ryan McInerney told analysts during Tuesday's earnings call that the clarification to Reg II has not yet impacted the card network's market share. Meibach on Thursday also said Mastercard has not seen an impact from the Reg II clarification.

Miebach on Thursday also argued that the card network provides a high level of security for digital transactions. "The merchant [under Reg II] could route to the least costly and least secure route," Miebach said. 

Payments

Visa sees no effects so far from Fed debit-routing enforcement

October 25, 2023 9:47 AM

Several parts of the card payments value chain, including issuers, networks, merchant processors and merchants, have roles in security and fraud prevention, said Aaron Press, research director for worldwide payment strategies at IDC. 

"Any regulation that impacts network revenues is going to force the networks to make choices about where to focus their resources," Press said. "The regulation certainly has the potential to reduce Mastercard's revenue, but it's up to them how they absorb the impact."

It is unlikely that any participant in the payment system, especially the networks, would be willing to compromise security or fraud prevention. "They are absolutely critical to both merchant and consumer confidence in the systems." Press said. 

Open for open banking

Miebach was more supportive of a proposal from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to govern open banking, which allows consumers to opt in to having their bank account data shared with third parties to make it easier to access expanded financial and nonfinancial services via their bank account. 

The CFPB's pending rules would give consumers more control over their data and restrict usage by third parties, particularly pertaining to selling data or analyzing it for cross-selling.  

"The CFPB is in line with what we're thinking," Miebach said. "It's the consumers' data." 

Mastercard is positioned to take advantage of open banking due to its network effect, Miebach said, adding that the card network can connect to 95% of bank deposits in the U.S. and more than 3,000 banks across Europe. "We have a lot of partners that are interested in that scale," Miebach said. 

Mastercard recently announced open banking partnerships with FIS, Zip, JPMorgan Chase and Verizon to support identity verification, credit risk and other services. 

"We can enhance ACH [digital transfer] flows and produce a simpler experience to enable consumers to share data with trusted parties," Miebach said, adding that Mastercard can help determine if there are sufficient funds for an A2A payment, among other services tied to A2A payments. "We're adding value to ACH flows." 

Consumers are still strong, Mastercard says

Consumer spending trends suggest resilience and a prioritization of "experiences" over "things," suggesting that discretionary spending remains strong, according to Mastercard. Cross-border payments grew 21% as the post-pandemic travel recovery continues, with travel payment volume for the most recent quarter at 155% of 2019's third quarter volume. Mastercard projected full-year growth in the low double digits, affirming earlier projections. 

"While macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty remains elevated, our diversified business model positions us well to capitalize on the substantial opportunities in payments and services," Miebach said. 

Under analyst questioning on the payments-related stock selloff in Europe on Wednesday following Worldline's cut to its earnings outlook, Miebach said he is confident in Mastercard's strength in the region.  

"Consumer spending remains strong in Germany and Europe," Miebach said, adding that the U.K. has seen some moderation. "But we're seeing strong growth in Europe. It has been a bright spot." 

In a research note, Jeffries said a lower tax rate drove most of the "earnings beat." Jeffries also noted a deceleration of growth in October and projected fourth-quarter EPS of $3.10.

Miebach also weighed in on the war in Israel; Mastercard has an office in Tel Aviv.

"We will focus on the well-being of our people, and will continue to support them," Miebach said, adding that it would contribute to relief efforts and would respond to conditions on the ground if necessary.