Today America
Banker published an op-ed
(subscription required) by Jim Nussle, CUNA’s president/CEO, and
leaders from the Independent Community Bankers Association (ICBA) and the
National Association of Federal Credit Unions. This op-ed addresses the impact of the so-called Durbin Amendment, which
imposed price controls on debit interchange.
In an earlier American
Banker op-ed
the National Association of Convenience Stores argued that the Durbin Amendment
has not impacted credit unions and community banks with less than $10 billion
in assets. As we know, all
credit unions that issue debit cards have indeed felt the impact of the Durbin
Amendment along with many other onerous requirements of Dodd-Frank. Furthermore as today’s op-ed points
out, the Durbin Amendment has been a boon to the retailers, giving them an estimated
$32 billion windfall on the backs of debit issuers with none of this being
passed onto consumers. Our recently released regulatory burden
study estimates that price
controls on debit interchange have reduced credit union revenue by $1.1 billion.
Our Advocacy team will continue to monitor and respond to inaccurate statements by
merchants on the impact of price controls.
Furthermore, will continue to educate lawmakers on the true impact of
the Durbin Amendment.