RBA Surcharge Ban May Cut Card Payment Options

The Reserve Bank of Australia has introduced new reforms to ban surcharges on payments made through EFTPOS, Visa or Mastercard networks. From October 1, businesses will no longer be able to add extra fees to card transactions, with the aim of making prices clearer for consumers.

However, this move may have unintended consequences. Macquarie Bank has already announced that it's removing the option to pay rent directly by credit or debit card on its DEFT platform, which processes over 1.2 million payments each month. This could leave some renters without a convenient way to manage their cash flow.

The RBA is also lowering caps on interchange fees, which are paid between banks handling card transactions. While this may reduce costs for businesses, it won't make card payments free. Instead, businesses might increase prices or remove certain payment options altogether.