(6 October 2011 – Australia) Commonwealth Bank (CBA) announced that it would not be increasing fees to its existing merchant customers following industry changes to interchange fees which came into effect on 1 October.CBA executive general manager of Business Products and Development, Kelly Bayer Rosmarin, said the decision was particularly important as the Commonwealth Bank recognises that many of its retail merchant customers are already facing a challenging business environment.
“We remain committed to supporting our customers as they continue to grapple with difficult trading conditions,” said Ms Bayer Rosmarin.
“We understand that many businesses are doing it tough which is why we have chosen not to pass on these additional costs to our customers and instead absorb them at this time. We provide support to more merchants than any of our competitors and have around 160,000 businesses that will benefit from this announcement, helping them make the most of what will hopefully be a very successful coming Christmas trading period.”
The bank will continue to reassess its position based on changing market conditions. For all new merchants, the CBA will reflect an increase of half the industry figure.