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☆ Credit Card Swipe Fees Are Going Down. Are Points Going With Them?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( Elaine Glusac | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On Tuesday, the largest credit card companies in the United States reached an agreement with merchants to reduce the so-called swipe fees retailers pay for accepting credit card payments, potentially saving the retailers $30 billion. These fees also help fund the credit card rewards programs that many travelers redeem for things like free flights and hotel stays, leading points hawks to wonder: Are loyalty programs at risk? Last year, credit card payments generated an estimated $72 billion in fees paid by merchants, which are generally passed along to customers in the form of higher prices. For nearly 20 years, merchants have been seeking reductions in the fees they pay Visa and Mastercard for handling transactions where the cards are used. It would also allow merchants to potentially charge consumers more based on the card they pay with.

Organizations: Visa, Mastercard, Chase Sapphire Reserve Locations: United States

☆ Premarket stocks: Warren Buffett’s favorite indicator is flashing red
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-27 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

New York CNN —The “Buffett Indicator” is flashing red. If the stock market is growing a lot faster than the economy, that could be a sign of a bubble. Yes, but: The so-called Buffett Indicator is not without flaw. By the closing bell, Trump Media ended at $57.99, up by a more modest 16% on the day. He said Trump Media is likely worth somewhere around $2 a share — nowhere near its closing stock price of $58.

Persons: Warren Buffett, Fortune Magazine “, Berkshire Hathaway, John Hussman, Hussman, Larry Summers, “, ”, Louis Navellier, Goldman Sachs, Navellier, doesn’t, Buffett, they’re, Jamie Dimon, Kevin Gordon, Charles Schwab, Elisabeth Buchwald, Donald Trump’s, CNN’s Matt Egan, Jay Ritter, Ritter Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, Fortune Magazine, Nvidia, Federal Reserve, Bloomberg, Navellier, Associates, “, JPMorgan, CNBC, CNN, Visa, Mastercard, Court, Eastern, of, National Retail Federation, Trading, Trump Media & Technology Group, Trump Media, University of Florida’s Warrington College of Business, GameStop, AMC Locations: New York, of New York

☆ Jay Clayton: When governments select what a market structure ought to look like, innovation dies
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailJay Clayton: When governments select what a market structure ought to look like, innovation diesFormer SEC Chairman Jay Clayton joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss the $30 billion settlement by Visa and Mastercard over swipe fees, state of the the regulatory environment, the new era of antitrust, and more.

Persons: Jay Clayton Organizations: SEC, Visa, Mastercard

A settlement that could scramble the credit card businessA long-running fight between the credit card giants Visa and Mastercard and retailers in the United States is nearing an end, with the promise of lower fees for merchants. But the proposed class-action settlement could have wider consequences, including for the lucrative business of high-end credit cards — and for retailers. What’s in the settlement: Visa and Mastercard said on Tuesday that they had agreed to reduce swipe fees, costs associated with the use of a credit card, for about five years. Perhaps more important, merchants will be able to raise their prices based on the kind of card. For example, buying groceries with a higher-fee card — typically a premium card like the Chase Sapphire Reserve — could become more expensive than paying with a lower-end one.

Organizations: Visa, Mastercard, Chase Locations: United States

☆ Big changes could be coming to the way we pay for things
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-27 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

In today's big story, we're examining how a change in credit cards' behind-the-scenes fees impacts you… and your points . Under the settlement, merchants could charge customers more for using different cards despite being part of the same Visa or Mastercard network. AdvertisementTim Boyle/Getty Images; Jenny Chang-Rodriguez/BIThe agreement could ultimately reshape how consumers pay for things. AdvertisementPerhaps that's why one analyst told Business Insider's Alex Bitter he doesn't expect major retailers to pass swipe fees along to customers. But maybe, not unlike the fees the agreement targets, what seems small could eventually add up to something big.

Persons: —, Jenny Chang, Rodriguez, Insider's Grace Eliza Goodwin, Tim Boyle, David Morris, Alex Bitter, LUDOVIC MARIN, BlackRock's Larry Fink, Jeremy Grantham, Ian Shepherdson, That'll, We've, Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook execs, Francis Key Scott, Hunter Biden, Dan DeFrancesco, Hallam Bullock, Jordan Parker Erb, George Glover Organizations: Service, Nickelodeon, Business, Mastercard, Visa, Getty, Fed, Amazon, BI Locations: Europe, LUDOVIC, Baltimore, Port, New York, London

As a result, premium credit cards are more likely than others to be impacted by this legislation. You might soon pay more for the privilege of paying with a premium credit card like the Chase Sapphire Reserve or The Platinum Card from American Express. Premium credit cards: Worth paying a premium per purchase? But we've seen premium credit card annual fees steadily rise over the past few years, and this legislation may further impact loyalty rewards. But be prepared to potentially shift your payment strategy, especially if merchants begin charging variable rates based on different costs for premium credit cards.

Persons: —, Michael Spelfogel, John Ulzheimer, Ulzheimer Organizations: Visa, Mastercard, Service, Chase Sapphire Reserve, American Express, cardholders, Chase, Capital, Citi Locations: FICO, Wells Fargo

☆ Visa and Mastercard Agree to Cap Swipe Fees in Settlement
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Tara Siegel Bernard | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Visa and Mastercard have agreed to cap the so-called swipe fees they charge to merchants that accept their credit cards, as part of a class-action settlement that could save merchants an estimated $30 billion over five years — the latest development in a nearly 20-year legal battle. Each time a customer uses one of its credit cards, Visa or Mastercard collects a swipe fee — also called an interchange fee — for processing the transaction, which it shares with banks issuing the cards. The settlement, which was announced on Tuesday and is subject to court approval, can be traced back to a 2005 lawsuit by merchants arguing that they paid excessive fees to accept Visa and Mastercard credit cards. As more consumer spending has shifted to credit cards over the years, processing fees have also risen. To accept Visa and Mastercard, U.S. merchants paid $101 billion in total fees in 2023, including $72 billion in interchange fees, according to the Nilson Report, which tracks the payments industry.

Persons: Nilson Organizations: Visa, Mastercard

☆ Jim Cramer shares his thoughts on Mastercard, Visa, Reddit, McCormick, Hershey and UPS
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Jim Cramer's daily rapid fire looks at stocks in the news outside the CNBC Investing Club portfolio. Mastercard , Visa : The companies reached a settlement with merchants over swipe fees. "I think that Mastercard and Visa are both terrific stocks and this only makes them better." Reddit : Shares of the social media firm continue to rally since their initial public offering last week. McCormick : Shares surged nearly 10% after the spice maker delivered better-than-expected quarterly results and offered an upbeat guidance.

Persons: Jim Cramer's, They've, Jim Cramer, McCormick, Cramer, Brendan Foley Organizations: CNBC, Club, Mastercard, Visa, Hershey, BNP, United Parcel Service Locations: McCormick

☆ Tuesday’s rapid fire: Mastercard, Visa, Reddit, McCormick, Hershey and UPS
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailTuesday’s rapid fire: Mastercard, Visa, Reddit, McCormick, Hershey and UPSCNBC’s Jim Cramer on Tuesday weighed in on headlines around Mastercard, Visa, Reddit and more stocks.

Persons: Jim Cramer Organizations: Mastercard, Visa, Reddit, Hershey, UPS Locations: McCormick

☆ Credit-card points might be entering a new era
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Visa and Mastercard settled a dispute with US retailers over credit-card swipe fees. AdvertisementOne of the great American pastimes — using your credit card to accumulate points — could be about to change. On Tuesday, Visa and Mastercard settled with US retailers over a longstanding dispute tied to credit-card swipe fees. But the points game can be one of fine margins, and a change to interchange fees could have ripple effects for rewards programs. Don't be surprised if it starts taking a lot longer to rack up the points required for your next getaway.

Persons: Banks, —, they'd, David Morris, Morris, David Silverman Organizations: Visa, Mastercard, Service, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Bloomberg, Chase, National Retail Federation, Retail Industry, Association, Credit, Fitch Locations: bodega, It's, eMarketer

☆ You may have to pay more at checkout when using your Visa or Mastercard
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Grace Eliza Goodwin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Visa and Mastercard settled with US retailers over credit card swipe fees. The agreement allows retailers to negotiate card fees directly with the credit card companies. AdvertisementAfter nearly two decades of litigation, Visa and Mastercard have reached a massive antitrust settlement with US retailers capping credit card swipe fees. The agreement, which is still subject to court approval, will make Visa and Mastercard transactions cheaper for retailers and for some consumers. Some customers who use certain brands like Chase Sapphire Reserve may see higher fees at checkout, according to Bloomberg.

Persons: — Organizations: Visa, Mastercard, Service, Chase, Bloomberg, Business

☆ Visa and Mastercard agreed to $30 billion settlement that will lower merchant fees
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Elisabeth Buchwald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

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☆ The 'next big thing' in tech will come from these areas, UBS says — naming stocks to play the theme
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The "next big thing" in tech will come from sectors such as enabling tech — which includes artificial intelligence and cybersecurity — as well as healthtech, greentech and fintech, UBS said. Here are some names from UBS' list and what it says about each stock. "The medical surgical and neurological business has also returned to strong growth as the pandemic impact fades," the bank said. Broadcom : UBS says that Broadcom boasts a "market-leading" position in semiconductor design. Its greentech picks include French industrial gases and services company Air Liquide , French utility firm Engie , and German chemicals firm Wacker Chemie .

Persons: —, Stryker, ASML, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: UBS, fintech, Baidu, ASML, Broadcom, 5G, Intercontinental Exchange, Mastercard, Air, Wacker Chemie Locations: Wacker

☆ The Capital One-Discover Deal Won’t Fix Our Broken Credit Card System - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Aaron Klein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

This is a story about you and your favorite credit card, the one that earns you points. So this rewards card, it’s really a screw-over-poor- people card. Why are swipe fees in the U.S. nine times higher than they are in Europe? But these two companies control over 80 percent of the credit card market. Dick Durbin, the senator who helped crack down on swipe fees for debit cards, has authored a bipartisan bill that would use competition to drive down credit card swipe fees.

Persons: Marty, let’s, you’ll, you’re, It’s, MJ, Dick Durbin, you’ve Organizations: Visa, Mastercard, Federal Reserve Locations: Europe, Congress

Bilt, the company that awards points when you pay rent, adds Alaska Airlines as a transfer partner. However, Bilt will lose American Airlines as a points transfer partner in June 2024. Noteworthy Alaska Airlines partners include oneworld alliance partners American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Qantas, and Qatar. In addition to Alaska Airlines, Bilt partners with American Airlines, Aer Lingus, Air Canada, Avianca, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Air France-KLM, Hawaiian AIrlines, Iberia, IHG, Marriott, Turkish Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, United Airlines and Hyatt. Bilt and American Airlines will part ways in June, three years after their partnership initially began.

Persons: Bilt, — Organizations: Alaska Airlines, Alaska Airlines cardholders, American Airlines, Service, oneworld, British Airways, Cathay, Japan Airlines, Qantas, luxe, Air, Singapore Airlines, Mastercard, Aer Lingus, Air France, KLM, Hawaiian AIrlines, Turkish Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, United Airlines, Hyatt Locations: Alaska, Cathay Pacific, Qatar, Air Canada, Emirates, Air, Iberia, IHG, Marriott

Rising gasoline and housing prices led inflation to increase 0.4% in February, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Tuesday. The food index was unchanged in February, as was the food at home index. Meanwhile, a recent report on consumer spending from Mastercard found that retail sales excluding autos were up in February, with online retail sales up more than 9.1%. The Census Bureau is scheduled to release retail sales for February on Thursday with analysts looking for a strong 0.8% increase after January's drop. “A dip in retail sales to start the calendar year is common, however, this year January retail sales marked the biggest decline since March of last year,” said Chip West, retail and consumer behavior expert at Vericast.

Persons: ” Joseph Brusuelas, ”, Chip Organizations: of Labor Statistics, Federal, “ Services, RSM, Mastercard, Apparel, Bureau, Federal Reserve Bank of, Blue Locations: Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta

☆ Taylor Swift is making Singapore a mountain of money, and some of the country's neighbors are salty about it
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Edwin Tong, Singapore's culture minister, told local outlet Mothership on February 28 that the amount of grant given "is not what is being speculated online." As Tong, the Singapore culture minister, told Mothership, the city-state is looking "beyond just the economic impact" of Swiftonimics. Economists estimate that Swift's concerts in Singapore could contribute up to 500 million Singapore dollars, or $372 million, in tourist receipts. AdvertisementIt's a different story for spending on experiences — and it's heightened because Singapore is Swift's only stop in Southeast Asia. Mann said the people who have money to pay for flight tickets, Swift's concert tickets, and a hotel are likely to keep spending at other tourist spots.

Persons: —, Taylor Swift, Srettha, Edwin Tong, Swift, it's, Yun Liu, Tong, Kevin Cheong, David Mann, Mann, Coldplay, Si Ying Toh, Cheong, Joey Salceda, Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno Organizations: Service, Business, HSBC, Asia Pacific, Mastercard, Nomura, Philippine Star, Bloomberg, Vegas Locations: Singapore, Southeast Asia, British, Thailand, Bangkok, Indonesia, Sands

☆ S&P on pace to score fourth month of consecutive gains. History tells us what could come next
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Bob Pisani | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The S & P 500 is ending February with a gain of almost 5%. S & P 500: Four big months November: up 8.9% December: up 4.4% January: up 1.6% February: up 4.6% The November gain of 8.9% was one of the 20 best monthly performances in history. The S & P has advanced about 5% since passing the old January 2022 historic high, which it crossed on Jan. 19, this year. Put another way: the S & P has recovered all the bear market losses from the old high in January 2022 to the bear market bottom in October 2022, and added another 5%. "Yet it also offers encouragement that no post-recovery selloff saw the start of a new bear market before rebounding and proceeding onto additional new highs."

Persons: Steve Starker, Todd Sohn, Eli Lilly, Nicholas Colas, Sam Stovall Organizations: Nvidia, P, Technology, Services, Care, Broadcom, Communication Services, Meta, Health Care, Merck, Depot, Costco, JPMorgan, Mastercard, Berkshire Hathaway, Research Locations: BTIG

☆ AI is Uncle Sam’s new secret weapon to fight fraud
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Starting around late 2022, the Treasury Department began using enhanced fraud-detection methods powered by AI to spot fraud, CNN has learned. Treasury’s AI-powered fraud detection recovered $375 million in fiscal 2023 alone, Treasury officials tell CNN, marking the first time Treasury is publicly acknowledging it is using AI to detect fraud. Instead, Treasury officials say the type of AI they are using falls more into the bucket of machine learning and Big Data. The goal is to move with such speed that anomalies are flagged and banks are alerted before fraudulent checks are ever cashed, Treasury officials said. Catching fraud in millisecondsAmiram Shachar, co-founder and CEO of cloud security startup Upwind, told CNN the federal government should “absolutely” use AI to detect fraud.

Persons: Sam, Sam’s, Fraudsters, Wally Adeyemo, ”, ” Shachar, Steph Curry Organizations: New, New York CNN, Treasury Department, CNN, Treasury, Data, Washington, Office, Business Administration, Social, Internal Revenue Service, IRS, Google, Facebook, Penny Jar, NBA, Mastercard Locations: New York, Banks, Washington, Hong Kong

☆ Goldman's stock strategist says these 'shared favorites' among top investor types typically beat the S&P
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Goldman Sachs anticipates the S & P 500 will rise to 5,200 by the end of the year, the CNBC Market Strategist Survey showed. Instead, some better opportunities may lie in "shared favorites," according to David Kostin, chief U.S. equity strategist at Goldman Sachs. They've outperformed the S & P 500 a majority of the time, 63%, in the months since 2013. Other names Kostin considers shared favorites include Mastercard , Visa and Danaher . "Some of these shared favorites are … less highly valued and that's a perhaps more risk adjusted return opportunity set," Kostin said.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, That's, David Kostin, Kostin, CNBC's, They've, TD Cowen, Morgan Stanley, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: CNBC Market, Mutual Fund, KKR, Mastercard, Visa

☆ Jamie Dimon on Capital One's $35.3 billion Discover acquisition: 'Let them compete’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Hugh Son | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Jamie Dimon, President & CEO,Chairman & CEO JPMorgan Chase, speaking on CNBC's Squawk Box at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland on Jan. 17th, 2024. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon isn't worried about the added competition from a bulked-up Capital One if its $35.3 billion takeover of Discover Financial gets approved. Dimon, speaking to CNBC's Leslie Picker from a Miami conference, acknowledged that if regulators approve the Capital One-Discover deal, his bank will be eclipsed as the nation's biggest credit-card lender. The deal has two major components: the credit card business and the payment network, Dimon noted. It's unclear if Capital One can create a true alternative to the dominant card networks in Visa and Mastercard with this deal, Dimon said.

Persons: Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan, JPMorgan Chase, Jamie Dimon isn't, Dimon, CNBC's Leslie Picker, Richard Fairbank, Richard Organizations: JPMorgan Chase, JPMorgan, Discover Financial, Capital, Visa, Mastercard, American Locations: Davos, Switzerland, Miami

☆ Analysts love these Warren Buffett-owned stocks, including one expected to rally more than 20%
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( Lisa Kailai Han | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

But even a rally of these proportions doesn't mean that all future gains in 2024 are off the table for investors. As of Thursday, 85% of analysts covering the stock had assigned it a buy rating, with an average potential upside of 23%. About 62% of analysts covering the stock have assigned it a buy rating, with the average analyst predicting a potential upside of 14%. More than three-fourths of analysts have assigned telecommunications giant T-Mobile a buy rating. While T-Mobile missed analysts' earnings expectations, the firm posted a higher revenue than Wall Street had expected.

Persons: Stocks, Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway, —, Fred Imbert Organizations: Nasdaq, Nvidia, CNBC Pro, York Stock Exchange, Dow Jones, Walgreens, Alliance, Amazon, Chevron, Mobile, Wall, Visa, Mastercard

☆ Premarket stocks: Is Nvidia too big to fail?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Investors expect Nvidia to report earnings of $4.59 a share and $20.378 billion in revenue, up from just $6.05 billion a year before. Too big to fail: For the time being, Nvidia is the “most sophisticated and deployed” chipmaker in the world, and its output is one of national importance, said Newman. Capital One wants to be the biggest credit card company in America. If approved by regulators and shareholders, Capital One’s (COF) acquisition will create the biggest US credit card company by loan volume. Compared to other major credit card issuers, Capital One has historically catered to customers with credit scores in the 600s range, which is considered subprime.

Persons: “, ”, Daniel Newman, Newman, Jensen Huang, ” What’s, Sam Altman, Pat Gelsinger, Elisabeth Buchwald, Biden, Richard Fairbank, Fairbank, Samantha Delouya, Dow, Dow hasn’t Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, Nvidia, Wall, Microsoft, Apple, Investors, Intel, AMD, Discover Financial Services, Capital, Discover, Mastercard, Consumer Financial, Bureau, Walgreens, Dow Jones, Alliance, Dow Jones Industrial, Dow Jones Indices, Dow, Tesla Locations: New York, California, United States, China, Dubai, America

☆ Here's why Capital One is buying Discover in the biggest proposed merger of 2024
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Hugh Son | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

It's a chess move by one of the savviest long-term thinkers in American finance, Capital One CEO Richard Fairbank. Fairbank, who became a billionaire by building Capital One into a credit card giant since its 1994 IPO, is betting that buying rival card company Discover will better position the company for global payments' murky future. The deal, if approved, enables Capital One to leapfrog JPMorgan as the biggest credit card company by loans, and solidifies its position as the third largest by purchase volume. By 2027, the bank expects to add at least $175 billion in payments and 25 million of its cardholders onto the Discover network. The Discover network alone would be worth up to $6 billion if sold to Alphabet, Apple or Fiserv , Sakhrani wrote Tuesday in a research note.

Persons: Richard Fairbank, Marvin Joseph, It's, Fairbank, Sanjay Sakhrani, Sakhrani Organizations: Washington Post, Getty, Capital, Discover Financial, U.S, JPMorgan Chase, Independence, Discover, JPMorgan, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, One's, PayPal Locations: Wall, U.S

☆ America is on the cusp of a new biggest credit card company. Here’s what it means for you
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Elisabeth Buchwald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

If approved by regulators and shareholders, Capital One’s (COF) acquisition will create the biggest US credit card company by loan volume. Discover cards are already accepted at 99% of all US merchants that allow customers to make credit card purchases, according to the company. Credit card networks are the liaison between card issuers and merchants, for whom they set fees. If Capital One flips all its credit cards to Discover, Mastercard would stand to lose a quarter of its US credit card volume. Compared to other major credit card issuers, Capital One has historically catered to customers with credit scores in the 600s range, which is considered subprime.

Persons: New York CNN —, Biden, Richard Fairbank, Fairbank, JPMorgan Chase, Andrew Harrer, Democratic Sen, Elizabeth Warren, Jaret, Cowen Organizations: New, New York CNN, Discover Financial Services, Capital, Discover, Mastercard, Visa, US, American Express, JPMorgan, Bank of America, Citigroup, Bloomberg, Getty, Consumer Financial, ”, Democratic Locations: New York, Mastercard’s, Visa’s

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