Watchdog contacts banks on credit card charges

Commercial banks have been asked by the Malta Financial Services Authority to justify some of the charges on credit cards, Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech said.

"The government cannot intervene and issue legal notices to fix charges imposed by the banks. There are several commercial banks today and these compete for clients. The government cannot impose regulations about what they charge just as much as it cannot impose price orders on other sectors of the retail business," Mr Fenech said.

He was contacted by The Times in view of pressure being exerted by the Malta Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprises - GRTU about charges on debit and credit cards.

The GRTU is arguing that businesses were having to increase their prices to cover charges related to accepting payments by cards.

In a letter to Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi, the GRTU also said that a tax introduced by a Labour government 10 years ago on credit cards was discriminatory as the consumer had a right to decide whether to pay by card or cash. The GRTU appealed for the removal of this tax.