Credit card rewards programs are expensive and intricate for issuers to maintain, but they are also enormously popular with cardholders and a significant driver of customer acquisition. This Javelin Strategy & Research report looks at the current landscape for rewards programs, including possible responses by the industry should Congress pass the Credit Card Competition Act.
The Small Business Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) strongly opposes harmful credit card routing legislation introduced this year in the U.S. Senate (S. 4674) and U.S. House (H.R. 8874). If enacted, credit card routing mandates would be burdensome for small businesses.
For many small-business owners, it’s hard to imagine running their business without credit cards. A recent report found that 61% of entrepreneurs with a personal credit card use it to fund their business at least monthly, and a majority of those with a business credit card use it at least weekly.
Low-income, less-educated, and minority households are less likely to have bank accounts—which are essential for households’ financial well-being. People have cited high fees, minimum balance requirements, and other reasons why they don’t have bank accounts.
After the Great Recession, new regulatory interventions were introduced to protect consumers and reduce the costs of financial products. Some voiced concern that direct price regulation was unlikely to help consumers, because banks offset losses in one domain by increasing the prices that they charge consumers for other products.
The interchange fees associated with debit and credit cards have
long been a controversial issue in the retail payments system.
