VIsa Says RBA Interchange Cuts Slow Bank Investment
The Age reports from Melbourne, Australia on comments by Visa Australia head of public affairs Bruce Meagher that Australia is lagging behind in its implementation of smart cards partially because of the earlier decisions of the Reserve Bank of Australia regarding interchange fees.
Mr Meagher estimates the banks face a bill of up to $500 million to introduce the cards over a number of years which involves investing in new systems, terminals and back office support. He said the decision by the Reserve Bank of Australia to cap interchange fees on cards limited the return available making it harder to invest in new technology."In order to adopt the new technology the banks will have to invest money and whether that means an increase in fees for customers is a decision for the banks," Mr Meagher said. "We can provide the carrot and stick but we can't tell them what to do."
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