FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: J. Craig Shearman
(202) 257-3678 craig@shearmancommunications.com
WASHINGTON, Oct. 19, 2026 — The Merchants Payments Coalition tonight welcomed President Donald Trump’s latest call to pass the Credit Card Competition Act.
“Roger is also the number one champion fighting to protect hardworking Americans and small businesses from predatory credit card companies and out-of-control swipe fees,” Trump said. “He’s the leader. Roger’s bill to end these ripoffs will save the typical American over $2,000 a year and there is no stronger advocate than Roger.”
Trump’s remarks came during a rally held tonight just outside Wichita to endorse Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., the lead sponsor of the CCCA.
“President Trump has made it very clear that he wants the Credit Card Competition Act on his desk, and lawmakers from both parties agree,” MPC Executive Committee member and National Association of Convention Stores General Counsel Doug Kantor said. “When Congress returns after the election, lawmakers should answer the president’s call and finally bring competition to a broken payments market where Visa and Mastercard dictate huge fees that drive up prices for working Americans.”
Tonight was the sixth time since January that Trump has called for swipe fee reform. He first addressed the issue in January, saying the bipartisan CCCA is needed “to stop the out of control Swipe Fee ripoff,” and has increased his level of support in each endorsement since then. Last month, he called for passage of the CCCA “as soon as possible.”
In addition to Trump’s remarks, Vice President J.D. Vance, who cosponsored the CCCA with Marshall while a member of the Senate, last month called swipe fee reform “an issue that’s close to my heart” and said Marshall “has been the leader in the fight” to reduce the fees and “make life affordable” for consumers.
Elsewhere in the administration, Small Business Administration Administrator Kelly Loeffler said she is concerned about “fees that fall disproportionately on small businesses” when asked about swipe fees on Fox Business.
The CCCA has growing support in Congress, where Senate Banking Committee members Sens. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, and Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., plus Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, became cosponsors in early August. The three joined existing sponsors Marshall, Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Peter Welch, D-Vt. In September, Rep. Tony Wied, R-Wis., became the latest House cosponsor, bringing the number of House backers to nine, led by Reps. Lance Gooden, R-Texas, and Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif.
Credit card and debit card swipe fees have risen 80% since the pandemic and hit a record $198.25 billion in 2025. They are most merchants’ highest operating cost after labor, driving up prices by more than $1,200 a year for the average family, with some estimates higher.
Swipe fees for U.S. Visa and Mastercard credit cards average 2.36% of the transaction, which is the highest percentage in the industrialized world and compares with a limit of 0.3% for credit cards and 0.2% for debit cards in the European Union.
The fees are rising because of lack of competition. Visa and Mastercard, which control 80% of the market, each centrally set the swipe fee rates charged by all banks that issue cards under their brands and also restrict processing to their own networks. The CCCA would address that by requiring banks with at least $100 billion in assets to enable credit cards to be processed over at least one unaffiliated network like Star, NYCE or Shazam in addition to Visa or Mastercard. The measure is expected to result in competition over fees, security and service that would save merchants and their customers $17 billion a year and result in the gain of 54,000 retail jobs in the first year.
About MPC
The Merchants Payments Coalition represents retailers, supermarkets, convenience stores, gasoline stations, online merchants and others fighting for a more competitive and transparent card system that is fair to consumers and merchants. Follow MPC on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn for the latest on swipe fees.
