Credit card issuers make money in three primary ways — through interchange fees, through interest charges, and through annual fees. Along those lines, President Trump is suggesting he’s going to be majorly regulating this, and it could have implications for consumers, both positive and negative.
I first covered this yesterday, but would like to provide an update, as there were questions as to whether this was simply a “suggestion” from Trump, or actually a legal requirement. Well, it seems he’s actually serious, or something.
In this post:
Trump calls on one year cap on credit card interest rates
On the night of Friday, January 9, 2026, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to suggest that credit card companies should cap their interest rates at 10% as of January 20, 2026, for a period of one year. Here’s the text of what he wrote:
Please be informed that we will no longer let the American Public be “ripped off” by Credit Card Companies that are charging Interest Rates of 20 to 30%, and even more, which festered unimpeded during the Sleepy Joe Biden Administration. AFFORDABILITY! Effective January 20, 2026, I, as President of the United States, am calling for a one year cap on Credit Card Interest Rates of 10%. Coincidentally, the January 20th date will coincide with the one year anniversary of the historic and very successful Trump Administration. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP
Based on this post, it wasn’t entirely clear if he plans to enforce this through some sort of executive action, or if he’s simply trying to pressure credit card companies into voluntarily complying. The way he suggests he’s “calling for” credit card companies to do this suggests that maybe the latter is the case.
However, on Sunday, January 11, 2026, Trump was asked about this on Air Force One, and he claimed that credit card companies would be “in violation of the law” if they don’t comply with his orders. We’ll see if that actually ends up being the case, but that’s more serious than simply “calling for” something.
For context, credit cards are known for often having high interest rates, which are currently an average of over 20%. These are the charges that apply if you don’t pay your full balance before the payment due date. You don’t pay interest charges if you simply charge your purchase to a credit card, and then pay your balance in full.
My take on Trump’s credit card interest rate cap
The concept of capping credit card interest rates is something that generally has bipartisan support, so I don’t think this is any radical concept. Now, I am a little confused about if there’s actually an enforcement mechanism here, because that seems like an important detail. Trump claims companies will be in violation of the law if they don’t comply, but are Truth Social posts now a form of official lawmaking, or…?
If you are going to institute something like this, what strikes me as completely ridiculous is that this will only be rolled out for a year. If it’s a good policy, wouldn’t it make sense longer term than that? By having it only apply for one year, it seems like it creates huge uncertainty in the market, but then again, that’s not something that Trump shies away from.
Two things come to mind about this short timeline. First, certainly not coincidentally, the timeline coincides with the midterm elections. Second, and I think this is a very important point — this will be a financial disaster for people that will put them in massive debt. Can you imagine how many people will build up huge credit card debt when they’re “only” paying 10%, to then end up paying 25-30% interest rates a year later, with huge balances?
A cap on credit card interest rates would be good news for some people who finance credit card charges, since they’d be paying a lot less in interest.
That being said, I wouldn’t even say it’s good for everyone financing charges — there’s no denying that if interest rates were capped at 10%, lots of consumers with not-great credit would be locked out of getting credit cards, and might even have their accounts closed, because card issuers would find it too risky to loan them money at that rate. After all, there’s a huge risk to people not making payments, and the economics of that work differently with 10% interest rates rather than 25%+ interest rates.
Beyond that, if we did see a long term cap on credit card interest rates, it would completely change the credit card landscape in terms of how rewarding cards are, with everything ranging from welcome bonuses, to rewards on spending, to perks.
Right or wrong, credit card economics are heavily reliant on a cross-subsidized system. That’s the whole reason some of us are able to get such outsized value. Credit card rewards structures nowadays largely more or less rebate back interchange fees to consumers, as it’s easy to earn 2% cash back with cards, or even to earn huge multipliers on spending.
The reality is that the revenue that subsidizes a lot of rewards is the interest charges, since that’s the highest margin revenue stream from many card issuers. So we’re partly earning huge welcome bonuses and 5x points on some transactions because someone else is paying close to 30% interest.
I’m not saying that’s a good system, but I’m just being realistic about how it works. If interest rates are forced to be slashed by more than half in the long run, it will have major implications for rewards. Maybe that’s objectively not a bad thing, but it will happen.
For that matter, it would even have a major impact on airlines — they’re so reliant on credit card revenue nowadays to turn profits, and this would greatly hurt their margins in that area as well.
Bottom line
President Trump is telling credit card companies to cap interest charges at 10% for a period of one year, starting January 20, 2026. He claims that if credit card companies don’t comply, they’ll be violating the law. Currently, credit cards charge an average of over 20% interest, so this would majorly slash interest charges.
For those with great credit who are financing credit card charges, this would of course be great news (unless they take out a lot more debt, with no plan to repay it in the next year). Meanwhile for those with less great credit (who are higher risk for card issuers), don’t be surprised if this leads to them no longer being extended credit, and having their accounts shut down.
For that matter, this would without a doubt be bad for credit card rewards, since these interest charges are largely funding the lucrative card benefits we see nowadays, from lounges, to spending multipliers, to big welcome bonuses.
How do you see this credit card interest rate cap playing out?
People need to stop writing articles as if the President has unlimited power. Trump can "call for" whatever, but he does not have any authority to limit credit card interest rates. I understand he's done a lot of things that he doesn't have the authority to do...so maybe it's time to remind Americans that we're supposed to call upon our Congress to DO THEIR JOB.
Credit card rewards/points convertible to airline miles mean rich guys like me can fly around the world in first/business class free or greatly reduced cost. Those rewards do little or nothing for the average person.
Meanwhile, airlines make incredible money creating miles out of thin air to sell to bank credit card programs. Banks then offer one time rewards for a customer opening a card and charging a bunch of money on it. The...
Credit card rewards/points convertible to airline miles mean rich guys like me can fly around the world in first/business class free or greatly reduced cost. Those rewards do little or nothing for the average person.
Meanwhile, airlines make incredible money creating miles out of thin air to sell to bank credit card programs. Banks then offer one time rewards for a customer opening a card and charging a bunch of money on it. The bank now has a new customer being strangled by a 20–30% interest rate on card balances outstanding.
Book value of the airline is pumped up tremendously because of the value of its frequent flyer program and its smoke and mirror miles that can be sold. Then the airline reduces the value of its miles again and again!
What a fabulous scam that helps banks and airlines at the expense of the unsuspecting!
I'm not a Trump guy, but I totally support this 10% cap not only for a year but indefinitely.
My free 1st class flights are nice, but I can pay for them without rewards. So let's give the little guys a break.
And let's hear the screaming from the banks, the airlines, the bloggers who basically advertise for Banks/Airlines by excitedly reporting the latest bonuses.
This "idea" is DOA. It's not going to happen. Period.
All banks and financial institutions oppose it and it requires Congressional approval, which will not happen.
It should not be the government's job to bail out people who can't manage their money. I look into the future and see credit card debt increasing because people justify "it's only 10% instead of 24%" when they buy more stuff. People will bet on this being permanent just like the government will pay off their student loan. Now, if Trump proposed a 10% repayment plan after you cancel the card, that is a different story.
Trump spews a lot of bullshit and there is no law in place. The orange pedophile is trying to legislate through social media.
Are you dumb enough to believe this?
Do you remember his $2,000 rebate checks? He doesn't! See the NYT interview.
It is not the law, nor is it likely to be the law. Nor is he pressuring the banks. This is clearly "mid term" politics. Elections will be here in November and this kind of talk is great "bait".
I expect this will take effect the same day I get my $2,000 check and two weeks before the Trump healthcare plan takes effect.
At 32% he has a point.. Some people cannot even pay off the 32% interest rate and get into real trouble..
This is brilliant news that they will capping the interest charges , the people get more careful with debts in the future. Trump makes great politics , he is fantastic!
Trump cannot cap CC interest rates by executive order. Congress can pass a law to that effect but has not. CC companies will not be in violation of any law if they don't bend a knee to him.
Any workable credit card cost control legislation needs at least a few ingredients:
1. Permanence. Congress can revisit the legislation if there's something that needs repairing, but there shouldn't be any end date.
2. An interest rate cap that's pegged to a market interest rate such as a T-bill rate or the Fed funds rate. For example, the 26 week T-bill rate plus 8% (currently about 11.6%).
3. Caps on fees such...
Any workable credit card cost control legislation needs at least a few ingredients:
1. Permanence. Congress can revisit the legislation if there's something that needs repairing, but there shouldn't be any end date.
2. An interest rate cap that's pegged to a market interest rate such as a T-bill rate or the Fed funds rate. For example, the 26 week T-bill rate plus 8% (currently about 11.6%).
3. Caps on fees such as late payment fees. If you don't include fee caps then credit card issuers will just play games, shifting from interest-based to fee-based penalties.
This will go over about as well as his promise to make us all rich off the Tariffs we pay
These companies do not have ethical guardrails. I think additional language would be needed that prohibits card issuers from backloading the interest "difference" to the end of the program, if only one year.
Having dabbled in "peer to peer" lending, my experience is you need to be charging 15-20% or more on average on consumer loans to offset the considerable charge offs and personal bankruptcies and fraud.
No way this happens. No one would qualify for a credit card except the 0.1% and overall consumer credit and spending would be severely impacted. Bank CEOs and his economic advisors would stop this from happening.
Ben, for your bottom line it would really be nice if you included that there currently *isn't* a law capping credit interest rates at 10%, so any claim by Trump that issuers are *violating the law* is just fantasy. I get you're trying to appear objective and non-partisan to a vocal group of very partisan readers, but this is the objective, factual situation.
Somehow I don't think he's getting a cap passed into law,...
Ben, for your bottom line it would really be nice if you included that there currently *isn't* a law capping credit interest rates at 10%, so any claim by Trump that issuers are *violating the law* is just fantasy. I get you're trying to appear objective and non-partisan to a vocal group of very partisan readers, but this is the objective, factual situation.
Somehow I don't think he's getting a cap passed into law, especially not a first-year-only cap, considering his admin has been an abject failure at passing legislation at Dems who actually care about usurious rates would fight him over it being just for a year.
@Dusty
You seem to learn nothing from the last decade.
Does it even matter there *is* or *isn't* law.
Maduro is here in NYC.
Trump does what he says.
@Eskimo
Please, by all means, tell us what leverage Trump has over the credit card companies. I'm pretty sure Delta Force will balk if Trump orders them to black bag Jamie Dimon. The whole "you can't use active military inside the US" is pretty deeply ingrained in our military, whereas military strikes abroad are commonplace. There's a huge difference between the two.
Remember, Paramount bent the knee because they wanted the merger. Intel bent...
@Eskimo
Please, by all means, tell us what leverage Trump has over the credit card companies. I'm pretty sure Delta Force will balk if Trump orders them to black bag Jamie Dimon. The whole "you can't use active military inside the US" is pretty deeply ingrained in our military, whereas military strikes abroad are commonplace. There's a huge difference between the two.
Remember, Paramount bent the knee because they wanted the merger. Intel bent the knee because SCOTUS doesn't care about impoundment anymore and Trump was withholding CHIPS Act funds. Apple bent the knee over tariffs. Some law firms bent the knee because they didn't want to lose government contracts, but many fought and won, see Perkins Coie.
But what power does the executive have over the card issuers? They aren't seeking mergers AFAIK. Tariffs help them because higher prices means more income from interchange fees. They weren't being bailed out by the Feds. Trump can bluster all he wants, but he has 0 leverage in this instance. What's he going to do, trump up mortgage fraud charges? That worked *so* well against Letitia James.
@Dusty
But what power does the executive have over other sovereign nation?
Maduro surely didn't bent over in his bunker for Delta Force to grab.
"you can't use active military inside the US"
I guess National Guard doesn't count.
@Eskimo
I literally said Delta Force is going to balk if told to black bag Jamie Dimon. There's no such institutional or traditional safeguard preventing them from doing the same to Maduro.
And yes, National Guard doesn't count because those units answer to state governors, not the President. Only the DC National Guard answers to the President. The Texas National Guard isn't going to go to NY to black bag Jamie Dimon either.
And what's good in it? What kind of world are we living in now? After all, nearly every nation, including this one, has signed and ratified numerous conventions, some of which include diplomatic immunity of head of the states. There were reasons why the agreements are in place.
If Trump can do whatever he feels like, that means that every other nation can do whatever it feels like. Are you sure you want to live...
And what's good in it? What kind of world are we living in now? After all, nearly every nation, including this one, has signed and ratified numerous conventions, some of which include diplomatic immunity of head of the states. There were reasons why the agreements are in place.
If Trump can do whatever he feels like, that means that every other nation can do whatever it feels like. Are you sure you want to live in the world of total lawlessness, without any boundaries? I don't. It's not gonna be any safer or more secure. What if, for example, China and/or Russia as part of its economic argument with the USA Admin starts hiring, training and arming Mexican and Colombian cartels a-la Ukrainian example? They are like 150-180K efficient, experienced and violent killing machine, and capable of igniting the whole south of the country. Are you sure you want that?
Recent tanker hijackings are another example of lawlessness. Our navy and military is engaged into state-sponsored piracy simply, which isn't any better than state-sponsored terrorism.
Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) introduced legislation last year to cap credit card interest rates at 10 percent. It went nowhere, likely because most senators don’t want to wreck the American economy. Trump’s Friday night post on Truth Social came shortly after he met at the White House with provocateur Tucker Carlson, who endorsed the Hawley-Sanders bill and has used his platforms to advocate anti-usury laws.
If Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders proposed this, people would be cheering on this message board. +20% interest rates are predatory.
Incorrect. I don't like Dick Durbin's attempts to monkey with the credit cards, and I don't like this either.
First, those senators would not propose this for just 1 year. They would propose a permanent cap on interest rates, which would actually do something to protect people rather than suck them into a trap of spending more this year only to find themselves stuck with higher rates when the cap expires.
Second, neither of those senators would state that banks who don't comply are now in violation of the law - before an actual...
First, those senators would not propose this for just 1 year. They would propose a permanent cap on interest rates, which would actually do something to protect people rather than suck them into a trap of spending more this year only to find themselves stuck with higher rates when the cap expires.
Second, neither of those senators would state that banks who don't comply are now in violation of the law - before an actual law has been passed. They understand that they are not kings and queens. The little toddler with the Burger King crown apparently does not.
It would be really funny (if actual lives weren't being impacted), to see how trumtards twist their tiny little brain to justify crap that comes out of his mind.
MY FATHER IS A VERY SMART MAN.
How can someone else rip off American public. Its my right.
People in this forum under the age of 60 have no idea that credit cards at one time were only given to high income/net worth people. Along with business travelers that didn't want to chug around oodles of cash for rental cars, hotels, meals, parking. Does anyone remember Diner's Club? I remember my parents in the early 1970s talking about applying for a Diner's Club card to make our family vacations easier. Adjusted for inflation...
People in this forum under the age of 60 have no idea that credit cards at one time were only given to high income/net worth people. Along with business travelers that didn't want to chug around oodles of cash for rental cars, hotels, meals, parking. Does anyone remember Diner's Club? I remember my parents in the early 1970s talking about applying for a Diner's Club card to make our family vacations easier. Adjusted for inflation my parents were pretty close to the top 10%. Most of the other parents I know would have gotten laughed at if they walked into a bank and applied for a credit card.
And that's is part of the problem. People use credit cards to live on.
calm down dave ramsey
@Harold -- Zing!
@Zing -- Harold!
@George Romney think about what you just said. Your historical recollection is correct. Now, just imaging what would happen to one of the most consumer-driven economies in the plant if suddenly credit card companies only granted credit cards to who they did in the 70’s?
How does that work when only 10% of the population has access to a credit card. I’m sure our economy would be just fine. Let’s try and see what happens....
@George Romney think about what you just said. Your historical recollection is correct. Now, just imaging what would happen to one of the most consumer-driven economies in the plant if suddenly credit card companies only granted credit cards to who they did in the 70’s?
How does that work when only 10% of the population has access to a credit card. I’m sure our economy would be just fine. Let’s try and see what happens.
Appears I’m not the only one on my porch screaming that the whipper snappers to get off my lawn, LOL!
He's just talking. He says stuff and people think that he's working on affordability. He might try to bully card issuers into doing this, but he no longer has the power to do that and companies aren't stupid.
Stock market seems to be taking this halfway seriously. Capital One was down as much as 8%. Airlines also took a hit in early trading. Delta Air Lines Inc. shares fell 1.4%, American Airlines Group Inc. was down 1.3%, United Airlines Holdings Inc. dropped 1.3% and Southwest Airlines Co. slipped 1.2%.
Ouch Tim.
Trump REQUESTED
Trump REQUESTED
Trump REQUESTED
Not.
Credit card company stocks should skyrocket instead of dropping. What everyone doesn't understand is that once the interest drops to 10%, all the credit degenerates would just spend lots more and after one year when the election is over, interest can jump back to 30% and it will be a profit windfall for credit card companies. It is no different than when a credit card company offers a discounted interest rate to entice you to borrow more.
All valid points Ben (as usual). This being said, I'd happily stop getting huge welcome bonuses if Credit Cards companies would charge less interest on those who can't repay their balance in full. Regarding Airlines, though I appreciate it's the case at the moment, but if the only way an Airline manages to make money is through a Credit Card, then there is clearly something wrong in this business.
I don't like to pay for airfare that is the 3x the cost. Glad they keep ticket prices down with their credit card profits.
If this were to become reality, which I think is highly unlikely, the impact would be very hard to predict. It's possible issuers would view this as temporary and just absorb the financial hit for one year. Or they might move to reduce credit lines or close accounts. They might also tighten credit standards to where only applicants with FICO's > 800 get new cards. I'm not sure what would happen to SUB's. Would banks...
If this were to become reality, which I think is highly unlikely, the impact would be very hard to predict. It's possible issuers would view this as temporary and just absorb the financial hit for one year. Or they might move to reduce credit lines or close accounts. They might also tighten credit standards to where only applicants with FICO's > 800 get new cards. I'm not sure what would happen to SUB's. Would banks view this as an opportunity to grab share from timid competitors, or temporarily pull back to see how the dust settles? That's just off the top of my head.
Currently loan shark rates
Sorry, Davey, that isn't true. I don't use loan sharks, but they are certainly worse than cc rates. In Australia, companies that will loan you up to $5,000 (lousy credit score, etc.) or so charge about 4% a month.
4% pm = 48% pa........
Ben, unless your intent is to be part of the MAGA propaganda machine, why do you continue to give this story any oxygen? The things spews whatever it wants with virtually no accountability from its own party. It is as simple as that. Unless you plan on doing an evidence based economic driven deep dive into this issue of credit card interest rates, please move on. Don’t react to its every move even when, potentially,...
Ben, unless your intent is to be part of the MAGA propaganda machine, why do you continue to give this story any oxygen? The things spews whatever it wants with virtually no accountability from its own party. It is as simple as that. Unless you plan on doing an evidence based economic driven deep dive into this issue of credit card interest rates, please move on. Don’t react to its every move even when, potentially, there could be collateral impacts to the travel sector. It is mostly bluster, self-delusional fantasy and lies. And, what is not is frightening to contemplate.
Agent Orange is planning to cap credit card interest rates. Annex Greenland by force if necessary and bomb Iran by popular demand. He must have really changed his political views, perhaps he will change his name too …. Donald Xi Putin one suspects!
Aero, the irony is that he would probably have an easier time annexing Greenland, because of the effectiveness of the US military, and the fact that our military is already there, and also is allowed to be there under existing NATO rules; however, the interest rate topic is not really under his authority, unless he pretextually declares martial law, disbands Congress and the Courts, and then issues royal edicts on interest rates on a whim......
Aero, the irony is that he would probably have an easier time annexing Greenland, because of the effectiveness of the US military, and the fact that our military is already there, and also is allowed to be there under existing NATO rules; however, the interest rate topic is not really under his authority, unless he pretextually declares martial law, disbands Congress and the Courts, and then issues royal edicts on interest rates on a whim... but, by that point, I think the value of our currency won't even matter. Having fun yet?
An interesting synopsis 1990. It is always good to get another opinion on the current situation facing those living on the other side of the pond. My sister who lives in CO and FL, has an interesting perspective too.
As for my wife and me …. we just move on if and when it suits us.
We thought that the last geriatric POTUS was a joke, his replacement Agent Orange, is laughable. As for the mob of loonies over here they are beyond redemption and my contempt.
"Well, it seems he’s actually serious, or something."
He doesn't know if he's serious; immediately after the brief 10-second intervals where he remembers where he is, he immediately forgets afterwards. All he knows is what his dementia tells him minute-by-minute, which is "more money for ME!"
He also knows how to fart audibly during meetings with big oil CEOs, who were laughing up their sleeves at him while holding their noses from the miasma that...
"Well, it seems he’s actually serious, or something."
He doesn't know if he's serious; immediately after the brief 10-second intervals where he remembers where he is, he immediately forgets afterwards. All he knows is what his dementia tells him minute-by-minute, which is "more money for ME!"
He also knows how to fart audibly during meetings with big oil CEOs, who were laughing up their sleeves at him while holding their noses from the miasma that was emitted by his very full diaper.
Yeah, between Venezuela, ICE murdering white women, and him going after the Fed, we've nearly forgotten that the administration has failed to disclose the Epstein evidence, since December 19. Huh. Anyway... "don't look at the man behind the curtain! I'm the great and powerful, Oz!!"
Just like always u libs with TDS would find fault if he cured cancer! U would say what about helping everyone that now can’t make 100’s of billions off of everything Cancer!
It’s really up to people not spending what they don’t have
WHAT WOUOD ACTUALLY WORK IS 10% on the balances they currently have!
TDS = Trump Dementia Syndrome.
SAD!
Those of us who don't give Trump credit for things that happen to be beneficial under his reign most often aren't doing so because of this fictional "TDS" - we're doing so because every positive outcome of his administration is accompanied by at least twice as many negative outcomes.
Put it another way - if I go to a massage therapist and they poke my eyes, kick me in the balls, slap me in the...
Those of us who don't give Trump credit for things that happen to be beneficial under his reign most often aren't doing so because of this fictional "TDS" - we're doing so because every positive outcome of his administration is accompanied by at least twice as many negative outcomes.
Put it another way - if I go to a massage therapist and they poke my eyes, kick me in the balls, slap me in the face, punch me in the stomach, and then also give me a really great neck and shoulder massage - they're not getting a good review. And neither should Trump.
Ave Atque Vale, motherfuckers.
ADR, you lost your name with the last word of your post …. do you actually know the person who did that to yours?
Oh honey. You appear to have the IQ of a snail.
Trump will never cure cancer. Scientists will.
Trump wants, not "Trump plans."
There is a big difference since any change requires Congressional approval.
Agreed. And, it'd be swell if Congress would actually be a 'check' and a 'balance' or whatever that was supposed to mean when the 'Founding Fathers' were pretty clear that they didn't want a tyrant or king again.
You now see what your English forebears have imposed upon you 1990 …. my King trumps your Agent Orange any day of the week, yes?
Charles (and your system) has its faults, but, at least for now, he seems like a relatively restrained, benevolent monarch. I donno, I didn't feel under threat during my recent visit to 'great' Britain.
Pray tell in which location did you feel threatened?
Personally, I avoid Kahn’s Kingdom, that is simply because I am fearful of how I might be provoked into ‘mistreating’ the great unwashed!
The card issuing banks must be loving this reduction. Can't wait to hear Jaime D claim this is the greatest thing since slice bread.
JPMC CEO Jamie Dimon in November 2025: "We have to be very careful... how the next DOJ is going to deal with it." He knows Trump and Trump-ism is temporary.
And Bilt is rolling out new cards in 2 days? Good luck...
BILT 2.0 was doomed before this (ever since sugar-daddy Wells Fargo planned to pull-out), and will be doomed regardless (because they're removing the one thing that mattered with the program, earning 1x points on rent payments while waiving the typical 3% transaction fee.) There are no multipliers, or 'BILT Cash,' or a cool design, that can save these new cards. I'd love to be proven wrong here.
we actually don't know what's on offer for bilt yet. we only have a ton of speculation.
How about giving the interest break to folk's who ONLY agree to not use their CC's for the one year, thus giving them a chance to pay down/pay off their high interest CC's ?
The main mistake is on another level. If US citizens spend more due to lower interest rates they will also spend it on imported goods which goes directly against the target to lower the trade deficit.
If they do not send more than the credit card companies will have to make up for the losses somewhere else.
Until a couple of eeeks ago the POTUS said that affordability is a democratic hoax.
Now it is so important that he has to afopt an idea of Bernie Sanders.
Find the mistake.
If Trump wants to adopt actual progressive policies, that'd be swell, but that is not this.
Trump wants to juice the economy for the midterms. He's mostly trying by attempt to get rid of Fed Chair Powell and insert a loyalist who will drop interest rates to zero. However, ending the independence of the Fed will cause hyper-inflation and volatility we have never seen before, far worse outcomes for more people.
Yep! The U.S. and the UK are heading towards tremendous economic despair, all due to the facts that more people did not vote for the elected governments than did so. There is something drastically wrong with both electoral systems.
Well, I'd say, your government did not have to actually do Brexit, based on a 50% referendum. Like, they could've said, 'ok, nice idea, let's do the details, then vote on the specifics.' Instead, it's as if all that Russian money poured into London real estate, and your conservatives decided, fine, we'd be better off with Putin than France/Germany. Perhaps, the UK should rejoin, and Europe should federalize, form a joint military, create its own...
Well, I'd say, your government did not have to actually do Brexit, based on a 50% referendum. Like, they could've said, 'ok, nice idea, let's do the details, then vote on the specifics.' Instead, it's as if all that Russian money poured into London real estate, and your conservatives decided, fine, we'd be better off with Putin than France/Germany. Perhaps, the UK should rejoin, and Europe should federalize, form a joint military, create its own nuclear umbrella. Fast.
I think this topic forgets about the whole idea. Lowering the interest rates will almost encourage more people to spend on credit cards for things they do not have the money to pay for. This said depending on the type of charge and what else you could do / earn with the money, 10% APR is actually not that much if you think about it. It is higher than mortgages or other loans with guarantees but in some contexts may workout for some people.
1 year cap - show the little people you are on their side + 1 claim for the lower middle class. After the election, rates back up, perhaps even higher. A big chunk of Maga base aren't well schooled in economics to realize the effects. It just sounds good to them. a win for the little guy
Filed under: "Things that will never happen for $1000."
I've been saying it for a long time. This is more evidence. Trump has no core political beliefs ("Yeah Trump!" isn't a political belief). He is a populist, the scum of the political world.
Joe Rogen (and many other MAGA-oriented influencers) has essentially said that we were duped. This is not the "great" many of us voted for.
He likely has neither authority nor votes to do this, and the nice even number tells you that like everything else Dump suggests, it's just to throw some easy to understand, quotable promises to his base.
Who cheer vigorously no matter what it is, but are too mentally deficient to even notice when it never happens. How many different times did the regime promise multi-thousand dollar checks? lol
"300M Americans have died from overdoses", he...
He likely has neither authority nor votes to do this, and the nice even number tells you that like everything else Dump suggests, it's just to throw some easy to understand, quotable promises to his base.
Who cheer vigorously no matter what it is, but are too mentally deficient to even notice when it never happens. How many different times did the regime promise multi-thousand dollar checks? lol
"300M Americans have died from overdoses", he said that recently... How about we stop taking him seriously when it's pretty clear he's a mix of corruption and dementia.
Trump is a living legend. MAGA.
Sure - a living legend like John Wayne Gacy. Being known and remembered in and of itself is not a virtue.
The reason for making it only 1 year is simple: that gets him past the midterm elections. That's all there is it to it.
Beyond that, the 2 (Republican) Senators from North Dakota, which has a very pro-credit card regulatory regime (look at how many of your credit card agreements are governed by North Dakota law ... I guarantee you almost all of them) can be expected to dig in their heels/block legislation.
Many credit card agreements are governed by South NOT North Dakota law. For example, Citibank is headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. North Dakota and South Dakota are different states, a fact to which some people are oblivious.
North Dakota is best Dakota
Can the Government actually do this? When you sign up to a credit card you agree to their contract and the interest charged. Would the banks not then need to issue variation letters. I would suspect that a bank may call in the loan as they would not be making enough money or they would just hike fees at the same time. Like everything great on paper but I doubt it would work.
For American issued credit cards. I am all for anything that levels the points and miles playing field for holders outside the US as the outsized rewards offered by US cards have skewed the redemption market.
As usual for this administration, the idea was scribbled out on a cocktail napkin after 5 seconds of contemplation and will now be pushed forward to become law. The 10% APR is based on the first thing that entered Trump's mind with no statistical analysis involved. Riddle me this: how do you graduate from Wharton Business School and still have a fourth grade vocabulary (I'm guessing daddy's money "greased the skids")?
Any 4th grader that uses "bigly" is guaranteed to fail 4th grade English.
Despite the many negative comments regarding the one year expiration to this proposed policy, I think it's a good idea for this and for almost any "new" area of federal regulation. We often see unintended consequences when the government steps into an area in which they lack experience. However once a law or regulation is enacted it's often tough to get it reversed. The use of a sunset clause, or a predefined stopping metric, included...
Despite the many negative comments regarding the one year expiration to this proposed policy, I think it's a good idea for this and for almost any "new" area of federal regulation. We often see unintended consequences when the government steps into an area in which they lack experience. However once a law or regulation is enacted it's often tough to get it reversed. The use of a sunset clause, or a predefined stopping metric, included in the original legislation or presidential order would mitigate this problem.
That's a political problem not a policy problem. A 1 year expiration is a policy problem, assuming you're actually trying to make good policy and not just temporary fixes.
The banking and finance bros are some of the staunchest supporters of the GOP and very generous in their financial support of congressional candidates.
This goes nowhere.
This.
When can I decide how much everyone can charge me…what percentage of taxes I pay.
Why not simply start shorting AA?
Hahaha. American Airlines might as well stAArt putting themselves into administration. Good opportunity to buy the dip before he reverses it, but I haven’t yet decided what stock I should buy.
I think it's bad policy that will hurt lower income users.
That said, I doubt it affects high end rewards much.
Bank considers expected value of every customer separately. In the Amex Plat/CSR/VC segment, interest charges are about 10% of revenue. If that drops to 3-4%, annual fees might need to bump by $50 to maintain the same 'coupon book' of offers.
Bloodbath on the subprime end.
If you are using credit cards to fund your basic needs, even 0% isn’t going to cut it since you are spending more than you make. People with bad credit would simply be refused credit or their credit cards would be closed. The entire US economy is based on consumer spending so this is going to make things worse for people that need unsecured credit. Ask CGBT...
Aren't Republicans the champions of deregulation? Trump must be a RINO then.
RINO and was until he found a bunch of people who would pay him tons + networks to brainwash people as to how great he would be.
Didn't Repub always want less government regulation.
Now they want to control everything, corrupt people get out of jail free, while one from Venezuela gets arrested. Amounts to a prisoner swap, but more corrupt oil goes into the hands of the billionnaires + oil companies.
Capping credit card rates at 10% would mean a large swath of the "credit challenged" would have credit limits significantly decrease. The issuers have rates in excess of 20% because they have larger losses as well as needing to have bigger allowances for doubtful accounts. A "sub prime" provider like Credit One (their ads are everywhere) could not survive on a 10% cap. Some think this good because lower end consumers spend their entire life...
Capping credit card rates at 10% would mean a large swath of the "credit challenged" would have credit limits significantly decrease. The issuers have rates in excess of 20% because they have larger losses as well as needing to have bigger allowances for doubtful accounts. A "sub prime" provider like Credit One (their ads are everywhere) could not survive on a 10% cap. Some think this good because lower end consumers spend their entire life in debt peonage buying stuff they really can't afford.
"...lower end consumers spend their entire life in debt peonage buying stuff they really can't afford."
That includes food, housing, and medicine.
You really do hate the poor. You are pitiable.
You really must be on a different planet. Maybe take a look at new car financing. How does that $15 an hour person afford a $50K new car? Personally, I drive used cars. I can't imagine buying a $50K depreciable asset. You don't have to listen to Trump but listening to Bernie Sanders just erodes critical thinking.
Ahh, yes, George Romey, the Concierge Key, who "works for a living" and "drives used cars." You remind me of the Oracle of Omaha, with the quaint house, taking the grandkids to McD's.
And often that includes high-end electronics and luxury cars nonetheless.
《"...lower end consumers spend their entire life in debt peonage buying stuff they really can't afford."
That includes food, housing, and medicine.
You really do hate the poor. You are pitiable.》
There exist people who could live without debt, but live in continuous debt at high rates so they can have things not considered necessaries by most of us. Some people now charging necessaries on cc are those who wouldn't have to...
《"...lower end consumers spend their entire life in debt peonage buying stuff they really can't afford."
That includes food, housing, and medicine.
You really do hate the poor. You are pitiable.》
There exist people who could live without debt, but live in continuous debt at high rates so they can have things not considered necessaries by most of us. Some people now charging necessaries on cc are those who wouldn't have to if they hadn't run up a cc debt on items that weren't necessaries. One has to be blind to not see that many people put themselves in a terrible position by bad economic decisions. To admit this happens among the poor doesn't mean one hates the poor. I am saddened to hear a heavy drinking, heavy smoking, junk-food-eating person is suffering ill health with no savings. Pointing out (not to them, of course) that maybe moderate drinking, no smoking, and a better diet might have prevented both the health issues and financial difficulties isn't hate.
Oh please….the thing is attempting to play to the mid terms. A one year cap makes absolutely no sense and is just an idiotic ploy to address affordability. What it does do is inject yet more uncertainty into our economy similar to the opacity swirling around the validity of the tariffs. The thing said it itself, if Congress goes blue, the tenor of the last two years of its presidency will be at best be...
Oh please….the thing is attempting to play to the mid terms. A one year cap makes absolutely no sense and is just an idiotic ploy to address affordability. What it does do is inject yet more uncertainty into our economy similar to the opacity swirling around the validity of the tariffs. The thing said it itself, if Congress goes blue, the tenor of the last two years of its presidency will be at best be very challenging. Desperate attempts by an unhinged individual, pure and simple.
This is just a political stunt to show that the Administration cares about affordability. There are no laws to enforce the cap on the interest rates charged by private lenders. And it would be foolish for US Treasury to issue their own credit cards.
The lacks of laws has never stopped him.
no differnt than when the Dems say they are going to cancel student debt or other fake vote buying issues. It is LOL to see everyone with TDS flip out on this, if Bernie or Biden did this you would all jizz your pants.
Are we adopting a centrally planned economy? Have we not learned from history that such a move would be inflation-inducing? Along with tariffs? Some of us remember the US economic crisis in late 1979. Among other actions, the Federal Reserve abolished its Regulation Z, which then allowed interest rates to be market-driven. It is what ultimately tamed inflation.
Are you trying to argue with a master businessman like Donald Trump? He owned the 1980s. And every other decade.
A couple of things in play here.
1) This is just a campaign tactic. The president doesn’t have the power to unilaterally dictate these terms, but it’s very easy to say this and then, when it obviously doesn’t happen, blame the Democrats for “blocking” it.
2) If such a thing were enacted (by Congress), it might not actually hurt bank profits too much. Obviously, the income from individual borrowers would decrease, but with...
A couple of things in play here.
1) This is just a campaign tactic. The president doesn’t have the power to unilaterally dictate these terms, but it’s very easy to say this and then, when it obviously doesn’t happen, blame the Democrats for “blocking” it.
2) If such a thing were enacted (by Congress), it might not actually hurt bank profits too much. Obviously, the income from individual borrowers would decrease, but with a lower interest rate, it’s entirely possible that more cardholders would, at least occasionally, run balances, as the opportunity cost of borrowing at 10% (vs 30%) is so much lower. Writ large, this change could probably make up for a large chunk of lost revenue while potentially decreasing write-offs.
"The president doesn’t have the power"
I think the President has demonstrated numerous times things he did even if he doesn't have the power.
Then i guess he does have the power. Also why is it such a hard concept to understand if you have bad credit then you shouldnt use a credit card. I hope cards are harder to get approved for 75% of people should just use debit cards and never touch a credit card.
@Steve
It's a hard concept alright, even you don't understand.
People with bad credit are the easiest to milk money from.
So our President is lowering interest rates that would help every American. Yet this blogger finds it necessary to attack him???
(1) That was proposed by AOC and Sanders.
(2) Just for a year, guess why
I noticed that in a separate article that there was a bipartisan bill sponsored by Sanders and some Republican. I thought “Dod hell freeze over that President Trump was backing something Sanders proposed?” LOL.
Eh, the readers of this blog rely on credit card rewards, so I don't think the proposal would indeed help every American.
How did he attack him? He stated both sides of the argument from a travel/ points perspective. You troll farms fools are incredibly dumb.
TACO will quietly walk it back, just wait
Where's the attack?
I love it when people who doesn't get econ or finance says stupid things like this.
"So our President is lowering interest rates that would help every American."
Maybe they want less people to have credit cards?
Maybe they want to slow the number one driver of the economy, consumer spending? What year did you drop out of school?
As someone working in the industry, I can tell you that this will have limited impact on rewards (though the uncertainty it will cause will lead to a lot of confusion). Revenue and profits are largely driven by interchange fees and as long as that isn’t touched everything will be fine.
I was thinking the same thing. I don't work in the industry, but I was thinking about this a while back when there was legislation on the news that would cap interchange fees.
I was always under the impression that credit card companies make most of their money from interchange fees. Think about it, every time you pay something with a credit card, while you do get rewards back, it is typically less than...
I was thinking the same thing. I don't work in the industry, but I was thinking about this a while back when there was legislation on the news that would cap interchange fees.
I was always under the impression that credit card companies make most of their money from interchange fees. Think about it, every time you pay something with a credit card, while you do get rewards back, it is typically less than the interchange fee. The exception might be the 4x/% and 5x/% rewards we see, but that loss is small compared to how many people put their other non-bonused category spending on those cards. My assumption was that credit card companies' interest revenue is mostly just used to lend out more to users. I assume that if this 10% cap is introduced (and becomes permanent in a hypothetical world), what would be affected is how much banks lend out to users, specifically risky users. Maybe sign up bonuses as well, but I think competition will drive that more. Thats my thinking anyway.
I think you look at this like similar to other "big" announcements in the past. Look at the announcements about food dyes last year. Many companies got on board long before a ban was to be put in place. It gets the conversation front and center. If you haven't figured out this tactic, used a lot by this Admin, then you haven't been paying attention. Secondly, it pulls the affordability topic away from Democrats, who,...
I think you look at this like similar to other "big" announcements in the past. Look at the announcements about food dyes last year. Many companies got on board long before a ban was to be put in place. It gets the conversation front and center. If you haven't figured out this tactic, used a lot by this Admin, then you haven't been paying attention. Secondly, it pulls the affordability topic away from Democrats, who, while banging on their pots and pans, haven't really done anything on that front.
Why would he advance a policy objective to help Republicans in the midterms that they would certainly oppose and Democrats would likely embrace? Republicans have been turning back credit card rate caps for decades.
Surely some will grumble, but a lot will get on board.
Certainly oppose? lol. There is not a Republican in either house that will oppose anything that man does even if it meant selling out their own family and constituents. Except releasing THE FILES, of course. Can't have that. "Certainly"...lolololol.
I thought "affordability" was a hoax?
pRiCe Of EgGs… hE’s ToO oLd… BuT hEr EmAiLs…
What’ll it be next time? And yet, Trump hasn’t dealt with inflation, is also too old and getting worse mentally, and his administration violates the laws on secured communications (Singal-gate, documents-scandal), and that’s not even the worst he’s done. We need accountability, no matter how long it takes.
False. He's 'making headlines' because of midterms elections approaching. He will not do any of this. Wake up people!
The fact that it’s only for a year which ends shortly after the midterms makes it definitely seem more political. People will definitely continue to carry balances beyond one year.
The Congress elected this fall will be last of Trump's last term. He so dearly wants to be able to pass legislation that cements his legacy in his self-centered view of the world. Yeah, he wants to be an ex-president who is sought out for his approval (not that he will wait to be asked). But he so wants to make his mark in the next 3 years. Build Arches, win a Nobel, get his...
The Congress elected this fall will be last of Trump's last term. He so dearly wants to be able to pass legislation that cements his legacy in his self-centered view of the world. Yeah, he wants to be an ex-president who is sought out for his approval (not that he will wait to be asked). But he so wants to make his mark in the next 3 years. Build Arches, win a Nobel, get his name on things, not balance the budget or fix Social Security. He imagines that, on his death, the headline will be "Greastest President Ever Dies: Entire World in Mourning."
This is certainly an area for sensible federal legislation, but that’s not coming anytime soon. I doubt an EO would survive the first round in federal court. Trump may think the banks would suck it up and voluntarily submit to an EO since he’s only proposing a one year cap, but they won’t. Even if they did, banks would cut expenses rather than profit margins, which could mean a reduction in frequent flyer perks, but...
This is certainly an area for sensible federal legislation, but that’s not coming anytime soon. I doubt an EO would survive the first round in federal court. Trump may think the banks would suck it up and voluntarily submit to an EO since he’s only proposing a one year cap, but they won’t. Even if they did, banks would cut expenses rather than profit margins, which could mean a reduction in frequent flyer perks, but more likely would mean a contraction of credit to the poorest and highest risk consumers. That’s not what he wants in an election year.
Move on, this won't happen...
For real. Unless Congress/Fed/Courts really have just become the State Duma (a rubber stamp for our dictator), like, Presidents do not set interest rates, especially not on a whim.
That's exactly what this congress has been - a rubber stamp. No congress, that I knew, ceded so much of its power to the executive branch. The SCOTUS is in Trump's pocket. The district courts are trying their best. Eliminating nationwide injeuctions is SCOTUS' way of making it harder for them.
Rewards are evil. They just increase cost. Rewards don't just pop up free with no cost to merchants, who pay a higher rate when reward cards are used.
Rich people are the ones that get the rewards. They should be punished. Frequent flyer miles are even worse. There should be a wealth tax on miles in your account. If you are an elite member, should should earn fewer miles per dollar, like 5 miles per...
Rewards are evil. They just increase cost. Rewards don't just pop up free with no cost to merchants, who pay a higher rate when reward cards are used.
Rich people are the ones that get the rewards. They should be punished. Frequent flyer miles are even worse. There should be a wealth tax on miles in your account. If you are an elite member, should should earn fewer miles per dollar, like 5 miles per $. General non-elite members should earn 10-12 miles. Frequent flyer miles are now a regressive system. Tax the rich fat cats
You forgot the “/s”
What's your issue with this? Rewards aren't about being a rich, a middle class or a poor. It's about your credit history - basically, whether or not you are being responsible with your credit and are paying what you owe on time. If you do - you are being a good citizen, and there is nothing wrong if you get to pick a small reward for this.
The rewards that are there are accessible...
What's your issue with this? Rewards aren't about being a rich, a middle class or a poor. It's about your credit history - basically, whether or not you are being responsible with your credit and are paying what you owe on time. If you do - you are being a good citizen, and there is nothing wrong if you get to pick a small reward for this.
The rewards that are there are accessible to everyone - pay your bills on time, do not abuse credit, and you get to have some of them too.
Even if one takes this seriously (which one should not), from a policy perspective, a 1 -year cap is completely inane. Those who are most vulnerable to overspending on credit cards would just spend more, only to find that a year later, they're paying the same old high rates, but on an even higher balance. It's an absolutely moronic policy, which is no surprise.
You got it.
The US needs to cap interchange fees, which will have a much bigger impact on the economy. A 3-4% markup for credit card fees is built into everything we buy, which disproportionately affects those paying cash or with cards that don’t have a lot of benefits. Interchange fees in the EU, for example, are capped at 0.3%.
In the grands scheme of things, interest rates are a smaller issue that the market and competitive dynamics will sort out.
And what's the result? There are no such things as cashback or rewards in the EU. Keep in mind - you can drastically lower the interchange fees, but then banks won't be able to offer airline rewards, and everyone will pay much higher airfares. Airline make significant chunk of their revenue off the sales of miles to banks for points - this is what in fact makes them profitable. Not the flying itself - flying...
And what's the result? There are no such things as cashback or rewards in the EU. Keep in mind - you can drastically lower the interchange fees, but then banks won't be able to offer airline rewards, and everyone will pay much higher airfares. Airline make significant chunk of their revenue off the sales of miles to banks for points - this is what in fact makes them profitable. Not the flying itself - flying itself is a "loss leader" in fact.
Then there is as well retail of all sorts, besides travel.
This is all about getting more money into the average person's hands to spend, invest and buy good/services. Between capping CC rates, what is quoted to be the biggest average tax return amount in history and trying to artificially lower mortgage rates, it's all about giving people more money to spend temporarily.
More money to spend equals a perceived healthy economy. Another reason why a tariff stimulus check has been discussed. Unlikely to pass, but still.
And, only proposed for a year because once he collects on this as a midterm issue he doesn’t really care after that.
A big tax refund just means you had too much withheld during the year. It doesn't mean you're paying more or less tax.
The regime’s lunatic titular leader will sink most Americans’ credit score if he gets his way on this.
The Musk-Trump-Vance must be opposed on everything, including on this lame-brained idea of meddling in how and to whom businesses lend money.
Their idea of ‘great’ is to make us all poorer and worse off… and in return we get… white cis male supremacy? Psh. What a bunch of losers.
Trump has REQUESTED interest rate caps.
It will go precisely nowhere and won't even be a thing in 2 weeks when some other idea pops into his head.
@ Tim Dunn -- Well he doesn't say "requested." He says "we will no longer let" credit card companies charge those rates. You may very well be right that this goes nowhere, but it sure seems like he's doing a poor job managing expectations. I imagine there will be an influx of people calling their credit card companies on January 20, demanding the 10% interest rates they've been promised.
Ben, haven't you noticed that Trumplestilskin says lots of silly things that make absolutely no sense? Haven't you also noticed that he forgets all about them at least as easily as your own toddler forgets about one toy as soon as he's distracted by another one?
Ben
Exxon has had no problem telling me that my expectations for sub $2/gal gas doesn't align with their expectations.
Kroger has no problem telling me that they aren't giving away milk even though lower prices on both products would lower my cost of living.
Tim,
Did Trump "REQUESTED" Maduro to stand trial in USA?
By the way, ExxonMobil never told anyone about $2 gas or Kroger giving free milk.
THIS IS ALL IN YOUR HEAD TIM and you fluff it up and use it as facts like always.
Fluffy Tim.
@ Tim Dunn -- Following up on this, now that Trump has said that credit card companies will be violating the law if they don't comply. Is he lying?
I was against this cap when the Democrats were for it, and I'm still against it. But I don't see how this impacts rewards at all? You are suggesting that people who spend a lot (and receive a lot of rewards) are loss leaders subsidized by people who pay interest? I know that is what main street thinks, but I find that completely unreasonable.
If a cap to interchange was implemented, it would destroy rewards,...
I was against this cap when the Democrats were for it, and I'm still against it. But I don't see how this impacts rewards at all? You are suggesting that people who spend a lot (and receive a lot of rewards) are loss leaders subsidized by people who pay interest? I know that is what main street thinks, but I find that completely unreasonable.
If a cap to interchange was implemented, it would destroy rewards, but I think this will just prevent marginal consumers from getting credit cards at all. The interchange fees pay for rewards.
If stores were allowed to accept some Visa/Amex, etc but not all, that would also impact rewards.
But I don't see how this does.
Patio11 wrote a good article on this a few months ago in his very good newsletter (Bits about Money).
@ Kyle0727 -- "You are suggesting that people who spend a lot (and receive a lot of rewards) are loss leaders subsidized by people who pay interest?"
I'm not saying it's a full-on loss leader situation without financing (it depends on the consumer), but a majority of the margins are coming from financing charges, especially on premium cards.
For example, when the Sapphire Reserve launched, Chase made it clear that the product wasn't as...
@ Kyle0727 -- "You are suggesting that people who spend a lot (and receive a lot of rewards) are loss leaders subsidized by people who pay interest?"
I'm not saying it's a full-on loss leader situation without financing (it depends on the consumer), but a majority of the margins are coming from financing charges, especially on premium cards.
For example, when the Sapphire Reserve launched, Chase made it clear that the product wasn't as profitable as the bank expected, as consumers weren't financing charges at a sufficient rate.
Especially among premium cards, where consumers are likely to actually eventually pay back what they're owed (due to having great credit in the first place, which allowed them to get the card), I do believe this would have a significant impact.
I think that premium cards are a very profitable segment which is why there is so much competition for it. If there is a change due to this, I think it would be minor.
Note that I'm also not against a cap on interchange fees. I think the argument they just raise the prices on everything for the benefit of rich consumers with premium cards and credit card companies is hard to argue with. It would make my travel much less fun though!
@ Kyle0727 -- I agree, I'm not saying lower fees all-around would necessarily be bad for the public. But it's not just "rich consumers" who benefit from the current system.
If interest rates were actually capped, a huge percentage of the population would be locked out of credit cards, because the risk would no longer be worth it for card issuers. They'd move to debit cards then, which offers less consumer protection, less flexibility...
@ Kyle0727 -- I agree, I'm not saying lower fees all-around would necessarily be bad for the public. But it's not just "rich consumers" who benefit from the current system.
If interest rates were actually capped, a huge percentage of the population would be locked out of credit cards, because the risk would no longer be worth it for card issuers. They'd move to debit cards then, which offers less consumer protection, less flexibility if they need a few extra weeks to make a payment, etc.
Ben,
It should be pointed out that in Europe, most people use debit cards, not credit cards. They have this antiquated belief that when you buy something, you pay for it, out of the money in your bank account.
The Chase Sapphire Reserve wasn't as profitable as the bank expected because their team didn't do the math properly on handing out 100k sign up bonuses like water for that card. The amount of sign up's they experienced was unprecedented.
I mean, lower revenue is lower revenue regardless of the source. Yes, ending the ridiculous interchange fees in the US would have a bigger impact, but any constraint on credit card revenue will reduce the rewards system.
You really don't understand why one year only? Think about it. Midterms. That's it.
Yup, exactly. Everything that happens this year is to try and juice midterms. I don't think it will work and Republicans will get blown out but hey, they can certainly try all tactics.
Relax folks... Maybe Agent Orange has a large credit card balance and is just trying to save some money on interest charges. :)