Vermont Congressman Peter Welch tells the New York Post in its 2/19 issue that "the banks have gotten out of hand." The quote is a reference to the prior day's issue of the Post reporting that the likes of JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America and others, may limit the amount of money consumers can charge per debit card transaction. Reportedly, they're indicating that in response to the Federal Reserve's plan to cut the maximum swipe fee to 12 cents a transaction from 63 cents, they may limit each debit card transaction to between $50 and $100. Welch and other lawmakers cite the announcement by some big banks as merely hollow threats and strong-arm tactics.
"These are banks that have gotten billions of dollars in bailouts. Now that there's a move to enact policy that could potentially help consumers, they resort to scare tactics," Welch said.
The talk of a debit-card cap comes as banks battle over so-called "swipe" fees that merchants pay banks when customers use their debt cards. The Dodd-Frank act inked last year granted the Federal Reserve the authority to establish a "reasonable rate" for such fees.
"These are banks that have gotten billions of dollars in bailouts. Now that there's a move to enact policy that could potentially help consumers, they resort to scare tactics," Welch said.
The talk of a debit-card cap comes as banks battle over so-called "swipe" fees that merchants pay banks when customers use their debt cards. The Dodd-Frank act inked last year granted the Federal Reserve the authority to establish a "reasonable rate" for such fees.
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