Progressive Grocer: Record Swipe Fees Hit Holiday Shoppers Hard in 2026
According to the Merchants Payments Coalition (MPC), credit card fees are eating up a sizable chunk of the holiday spending share. MPC said that so-called “swipe fees” will add up to nearly $600 million in costs across the holiday, with individual shoppers absorbing roughly $4.62 in fees alone.
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AInvest: Small Businesses Shift Credit Card Fees to Customers—But Could a $17B Bill Kill the Squeeze?
The cumulative cost is staggering. The Merchants Payments Coalition estimates that these swipe fees cost the average American family nearly $1,200 annually. To put that in perspective, that's enough to buy a Barbie doll or a Lego set every month. It's the financial equivalent of a small, steady tax on every purchase made with a credit card.
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Politico Morning Money: Taking stock
In a novel bit of policy messaging, the Merchants Payments Coalition — which backs retailers in the years-long battle over card fees charged by banks and payments companies — has launched a new tracker linking the surge in gas prices to swipe fees.
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Vision Monday: Credit Card Swipe Fees Hit Record-Setting $198.25 Billion
Doug Kantor, Merchants Payments Coalition (MPC) executive committee member and National Association of Convenience Stores general counsel, commented on data that showed credit and debit card swipe fees, charged by banks and by card networks to merchants for transaction processing, has hit a new record of $198.25 billion, according to the MPC.
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MPC Hill Blast: Fuel Price/Swipe Fee Tracker
Credit card swipe fees currently amount to 9.5 cents on the average gallon of gas and 12.8 cents on the average gallon of diesel, costing American consumers $56.3 million per day.
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Retail Customer Experience: Swipe fees hit record-setting $198.25B
Credit and debit card swipe fees, charged by banks and by card networks to merchants for transaction processing, has hit a new record of $198.25 billion, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition.
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Credit Unions Today: Merchants Renew Push For Credit Card Bill, Saying Easter Swipe Fees Will Top Half A Billion Dollars
Credit card “swipe fees” could add nearly $600 million to Americans’ Easter spending this year, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition, which said the added cost underscores fresh pressure on Congress to revive the bipartisan Credit Card Competition Act.
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‘Swipe Fee Ripoff’ Could Cost Families as Much as a Dozen Easter Eggs This Year and Total Nearly $600 Million
Credit card fees that President Donald Trump calls a “swipe fee ripoff” will cost families nearly as much a dozen eggs and the dye needed to turn them into Easter eggs this year as their total impact on the holiday approaches $600 million, MPC said.
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Chain Store Age: Credit and debit card swipe fees, charged by banks and by card networks to merchants for transaction processing, has hit a new record of $198.25 billion, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition.
The Merchant Payments Coalition has a not-so-happy forecast for the financial impact of swipe fees on consumers who shop for Easter using credit cards.
READ MORE +MPC Hill Blast: 4½ Months’ Worth of Groceries
New data was just reported by The Nilson Report payments industry analyst showing that U.S. businesses paid $198 billion in swipe fees last year, up from $187 billion in 2024. $119 billion of those fees were Visa/Mastercard credit card fees. These fees are up 80% since the pandemic.
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