New Zealand competition watchdog cuts commercial-card fees
( October 23, 2026, 06:37 GMT | Official Statement) -- MLex Summary: New Zealand’s antitrust watchdog has announced that it will cap interchange fees on Mastercard and Visa commercial credits cards, reducing businesses’ costs. In a statement on Thursday, New Zealand’s Commerce Commission said that reducing these fees will ensure the costs businesses pay to accept Mastercard and Visa cards are reasonable and improve the incentives for payment issuers, such as banks, to consider supporting alternative payment methods. This decision builds on regulations introduced in 2022. Interchange fees are paid by business' payment providers to the customers’ card issuers for each Mastercard and Visa transaction. The new interchange fee caps will come into effect on April 22, 2027.Statement follows. Decision is attached....
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