We are giving two final specific directions to Mastercard and Visa (the schemes) to implement the Information, transparency and complexity (ITC) remedy and the Pricing Governance remedy, following our market review of card scheme and processing fees. The remedies will improve transparency around the scheme and processing fees charged by the schemes and strengthen the discipline and transparency of the schemes’ relevant pricing decisions to address concerns identified in our market review and support better outcomes for businesses.
The ITC Direction will require the schemes to provide acquirers with clearer and more detailed information about the scheme and processing fees they are charged, including information to help reconcile fees with the transactions that generated them.
The Pricing Governance Direction will require the schemes to improve governance and maintain better evidence for their pricing decisions, improving accountability and helping us to better understand how those decisions are made.
Following consultation, we have made changes to the directions, including revising materiality thresholds and refining some information requirements to ensure the remedies are effective and proportionate. Relevant fee decisions must comply with the Pricing Governance Direction from end of November 2026, and the substantive requirements of the ITC Direction apply from end of July 2027.
