Interchange fees

A fight between U.K. retailers and credit-card companies that has lasted five years and spawned wildly different court rulings reached a London appeals court Monday that could determine the fates of lawsuits potentially worth billions.

With a foray into financial services, Amazon.com could disrupt the decades-old card payments system, a move that some say could save the retailer $250 million a year in swipe fees.

With most of the major card brands deciding to no longer require signature authorization on card transactions, merchants want to see more network rules go the way of the dinosaur.

The company sold securities in the fourth quarter to stay below $10 billion in assets and avoid a cap on interchange fees.

Merchants have been challenging surcharge bans in numerous states on free-speech grounds. They have the wind at their backs following another court victory on Wednesday.

It’s vital to work with a payment processor that fully discloses its pricing approach on its merchant statements, writes Jeff Zimmerman, COO of Clearent.

Financial institutions should consider personalized campaigns and offers designed to convert customers to their debit or credit card, writes Bob Koehler, executive vice president of project management for SRM.

In the crowded small-business payment technology market, Fattmerchant is taking a different approach to revenue.

A planned spinoff, combined with several new ventures, should help BankMobile turn the corner, says Luvleen Sidhu, the digital-only bank's president.

In a surprise move, the Supreme Court will decide whether Amex may bar merchants from steering customers to less expensive card networks. The card issuer will have to prove the consumer gain from its practices outweighs the merchant pain.