Cash card transactions in Poland cost shop-owners and businesses more than in any other country in the EU.
Polish traders forfeit 1.5 percent of the value of each purchase, significantly higher than the Union average of 1 percent.
Although such payments are invisible to the customer, many businesses have endeavoured to combat the problem, by introducing a threshold price. Hence countless businesses insist that customers pay over 10 zloty for the privilege of using a card.
The interchange fee goes to the banks and the payment organizations, principally Visa and Mastercard.
According to data provided by the NBP, Poles shell out 80 billion zloty yearly via cards, which means that the banks get a hefty 1.2 billion zloty.
Unsurprisingly, Polish traders are not best pleased with the fact that 1.5 percent of each transaction is lost. In Bulgaria, the rate for visa is just 0.4 percent.
In 2006, a case was brought against Visa for fixing by the Office of Competition and Protection (UOKiK). However, an official trial date has yet to be settled, leaving Polish traders to continue carrying the costs. (nh)
Source: Dziennik Gazeta Prawna, TVP
URL: http://www.thenews.pl/business/artykul151815_cash-card-cost-catastrophic-for-shop-owners.html
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