Visa makes changes aimed at lowering costs for grocers and small merchants
Toronto, ON – October 24, 2016 – Visa today implemented changes to its interchange rates in the grocery sector and an expanded category of food retailers, aiming to help merchants in these key sectors lower their costs. These changes were initially announced in April and are an example of our commitment to the voluntary undertaking with the Government of Canada.
In July, Visa also introduced a new category called Everyday Needs, which includes businesses in segments with a small merchant focus where Canadians spend the most, including drug stores, dry cleaners, convenience stores, taxis and restaurants. These changes will result in lower interchange rates for more than 175,000 merchants in this segment and support our commitment to the voluntary undertaking. In accordance with the Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry which requires a notification period for interchange rate changes, these rates will be implemented as of April 2017.
In 2014, Visa voluntarily committed to reducing its average effective interchange rate in Canada to 1.50% on consumer credit cards. Through the changes to the food retail/grocery sector and the Everyday Needs category, Visa continues to deliver reductions to key merchant segments, particularly smaller merchants where Canadians spend most. In September, the Government of Canada acknowledged the independent audit findings that Visa met its commitment to reduce credit card interchange fees, which include reductions of interchange fees for small and medium-sized enterprises and charities.
Full details of the new rates are available online at www.visa.ca. An infographic is available here.
About Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world's most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa's innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead of time with prepaid or pay later with credit products.
For more information, visit usa.visa.com.
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Carla Hindman
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