ASTANA – The National Bank of Kazakhstan and Visa, MasterCard and the UnionPay international payment card systems signed an agreement to reduce the margin values of rates of interbank fees for non-cash payments using payment cards (affecting the interchange rates), reported the bank’s press service on Nov. 3.
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Interchange is included in the acquirer fees paid to the payment card issuer by the acquiring bank serving trade and service enterprises.
According to the agreement, the international payment card systems operating in Kazakhstan are committed to reducing interchange rates nearly twofold.
The marginal rates will be reduced in two stages. The first phase will start on Jan. 1, 2024, and the second stage will be implemented on Jan. 1, 2025.
In the mass-market segment (Classic, Gold, and other systems), the thresholds of the rates will be decreased from the current 1.8-2 percent to 1.5 percent, at the second stage – to 1 percent.
In the premium segment (Platinum, World, and other systems), the rates will be reduced from the current value of around 2.4 percent to 1.8 percent at the second stage – to 1.2 percent.
In the super-premium segment (Infinite, World Elite, Diamond, and other systems), the rates will fall from around 2.45 percent to 2 percent, at the second stage – to 1.4 percent.
The reduction of interbank fees for non-cash card payments is expected to boost the development of the payment industry and reduce the volume of the shadow economy.
