Fed meeting next week on revising debit interchange fee cap

The Federal Reserve Board scheduled a meeting for next week on proposed revisions to the agency’s debit interchange fee cap.

Details: The proposal will apply to Regulation II (Debit Card Interchange Fees and Routing). The Fed’s notice said documentation will be available on the agency’s website roughly 20 minutes before the start of the meeting, which is slated for 1 p.m. (Eastern time) Wednesday, Oct. 25.

Previous Update: The Fed last year issued updates to its rules specifying that issuers should enable—and allow merchants to choose from—at least two unaffiliated networks for card-not-present debit card transactions, such as online purchases. Those updates took effect July 1.

ICBA View: ICBA called on the Fed to reconsider its proposal in a 2021 comment letter and 2022 joint letter with other groups, noting the Durbin Amendment has distorted the debit card and consumer checking markets. It urged the agency to delay the effective date in a separate letter earlier this year.