MasterCard faces EU fine over anti-trust breach

On the 9th of July, 2015, MasterCard received a Statement of Objections document from the European Commission. The anti-trust regulator claims that MasterCard has been preventing international banks from offering lower interchange fees to merchants and retailers in European countries.

Therefore, merchants do not get lower fees elsewhere and competition between across border banks is restricted, in breach of European antitrust rules, the European Commission clarified.

MasterCard has also been accused of setting ‘‘artificially high’’ transaction fees for its international customers who are making transactions within Europe. If the allegations against MasterCard are found to be true, then the Single Market could be facing a time of uncertainty.

According to the Commission, card payments play a key role in the European market, with customers and merchants using payment cards for over 40% of their purchases. MasterCard would also have to pay a large fine if the Commissions preliminary views are correct.

In 2007, MasterCard were found to have been restricting competition between banks based in France and Belgium. The card processors were also found to be raising interchange fees in 2009 and 2010.