EC: Study on the application of the Interchange Fee Regulation

The EC’s report is intended to provide a comprehensive evaluation of the effects of the Interchange Fee Regulation. It reports that, although IFR has reduced the interchange fees for card-based payments and generated a decline in merchants’ costs of accepting card payments, acquiring margins and scheme fees from international card schemes have increased, reducing some of the benefits. If they continue to increase, it may further reduce or eliminate the benefits of IFR.