SMEs join the rush to credit card surcharging

(21 March 2006 – Australia) SMEs and middle market companies appear intent on emulating large corporates by surcharging on credit card transactions, new research by East & Partners shows.East’s latest six monthly Merchant Acquiring & Cards report reveals the number
of companies across all market segments saying they are “planning to apply a
surcharge” within the next six months has increased dramatically.

The report finds that 16.6 percent of Commercial (middle market) companies are
planning to add a surcharge compared with 14.4 percent just six months ago. SMEs
are also following suit with 14 percent saying they will apply a surcharge, up
from 13.1 percent six months earlier.

The Top 500 Corporate segment continues to lead the charge with 19.4 percent
saying they will surcharge.

The average surcharge for Corporates, Commercials and SMEs has decreased over
the past six months.

“Merchants have recognised surcharging as a potential form of income and this is
increasingly the case for smaller and middle market businesses, who having no
doubt been on the receiving end of surcharging themselves from a telco or
airline, have asked ‘why don’t we do it?’” East & Partners principal analyst
Paul Dowling said.

“Given that surcharging is increasingly on the agenda for merchants, it will be
worth keeping an eye on whether merchants actually start encouraging customers
to pay by credit card, particularly in cases where terminals are not present at
point of sale. We could see further change in customer payments behaviour being
encouraged at point of sale.

“If customers have no other option than to pay for goods and services at a
merchant’s website, for example, it doesn’t leave them much room for avoiding
paying a surcharge,” Mr Dowling said.

“The Reserve Bank of Australia re-regulation assumed merchants wouldn’t
surcharge as this would push customers away, but the surcharging sea change that
is taking place now seems to be having the opposite effect,” he said.

The report shows that while cash and cheque payments continue to fall across all
market segments, website based payments are increasing, with this component set
to reach 10 percent in the Corporate segment within the next 12 months.

For more information please contact:

Paul Bartholomew
Senior Consultant
East & Partners
Tel: +61-2-9004 7848
Mob: +61-410 400 156
paul.b@eastandpartners.com