- Jun 6, 2007
- 852
- 483
- 910
In the Wall Street Reform Bill enacted into law last year the Federal Reserve was given the duty to set caps on the debit card fee that banks charge retailers when bank customers purchase a good or service from the retailer with a debit card. The Federal Reserve has proposed capping the fee at 12 cents per transaction, the current average that banks charge retailers is 44 cents per transaction. For the past two months largely the only thing the American people have been hearing on this subject from the banks is the Federal Reserve here will be cutting our profit margin from this debit card business and we will make up that loss in profit margin by adding on fees to bank customers, limiting and denying credit and the like. It is shocking the banks brazen intimidation tactics on this matter. This is nothing personal toward CEO of J P Morgan (the most reputable American Bank), James Dimon, because almost all heads of American Financial institutions act similarly but his comments on this subject reported in the media display this civically irresponsible arrogance of the industry when he said "But, of course, the consumer has got to pay and they weren't paying for debit before."
The whole public dialogue on this subject should change, the conversation shouldn't be what about the banks loss profit, the conversation should be what is the cost to the banking industry in providing debit service for retailers and what is a fair profit for the industry. The American people should be hearing what do retailers in Asian countries get charged (Executives in Financial Institutions in those countries aren't over paid like they are in America)! The American people want the overpaying of executives and employees in these U.S. financial institutions to stop so that these institutions will be fairer and more civically responsible in their behavior whether it be pushing investment or the fees and they charge for underwriting bonds for government entities or for facilitating businesses to hedge commodity or currency matters, etc.. Washington will never be able to set numerical limits on these peoples salaries but they can set restrained standards, policies and regulations and send these executives and their boards of directors the message that their whole attitude and values need to change. This issue is an opportunity for Washington to prove to the American people they got it their on the job America's Financial Industry needs to be responsible!
The whole public dialogue on this subject should change, the conversation shouldn't be what about the banks loss profit, the conversation should be what is the cost to the banking industry in providing debit service for retailers and what is a fair profit for the industry. The American people should be hearing what do retailers in Asian countries get charged (Executives in Financial Institutions in those countries aren't over paid like they are in America)! The American people want the overpaying of executives and employees in these U.S. financial institutions to stop so that these institutions will be fairer and more civically responsible in their behavior whether it be pushing investment or the fees and they charge for underwriting bonds for government entities or for facilitating businesses to hedge commodity or currency matters, etc.. Washington will never be able to set numerical limits on these peoples salaries but they can set restrained standards, policies and regulations and send these executives and their boards of directors the message that their whole attitude and values need to change. This issue is an opportunity for Washington to prove to the American people they got it their on the job America's Financial Industry needs to be responsible!
