A person paying with Mastercard. Courtesy Mastercard
A person paying with Mastercard. Courtesy Mastercard
A person paying with Mastercard. Courtesy Mastercard
A person paying with Mastercard. Courtesy Mastercard

MasterCard to raise UK card fees due to Brexit


Soraya Ebrahimi
  • English
  • Arabic

Credit card company MasterCard said Monday that it will charge five times more in so-called interchange fees for UK customers buying online goods and services from EU companies following Brexit.

"As a result of the UK leaving the European Economic Area (EEA), MasterCard will adapt interchange rates on UK cards," the group said in a statement.

When a customer pays a merchant with a credit or debit card, the store's bank pays an "interchange fee" to the cardholder's bank.

Card operators then collect the fees on behalf of banks to process the transaction.

MasterCard stressed that the interchange fee increase would only apply to online sales and would not affect in-store transactions.

The group will raise the credit card fee to 1.5 per cent of the value of each transaction starting October 15, compared with the current level of 0.3 per cent.

The debit card fee will be raised to 1.15 per cent, up from 0.2 per cent.

MasterCard added that consumers "should not feel any impact of changes in interchange fees", and that its own commissions would remain unchanged.

Main competitor Visa has not yet made any announcement on its fee structure.

After Visa, MasterCard is the second largest credit card issuer in the European market.

Britain finalised its divorce from the European Union on January 1, but the nation's hard-fought Brexit trade deal did not encompass the financial services sector.

Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital

THE BIO

Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979

Education: UAE University, Al Ain

Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6

Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma

Favourite book: Science and geology

Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC

Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.

Kandahar%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ric%20Roman%20Waugh%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EGerard%20Butler%2C%20Navid%20Negahban%2C%20Ali%20Fazal%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
While you're here
MATCH INFO

Manchester United 1 (Rashford 36')

Liverpool 1 (Lallana 84')

Man of the match: Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)

The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
The specs

Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8

Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm

Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km

Price: Dh380,000

On sale: now 

HAJJAN
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Abu%20Bakr%20Shawky%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3EStarring%3A%20Omar%20Alatawi%2C%20Tulin%20Essam%2C%20Ibrahim%20Al-Hasawi%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Medicus AI

Started: 2016

Founder(s): Dr Baher Al Hakim, Dr Nadine Nehme and Makram Saleh

Based: Vienna, Austria; started in Dubai

Sector: Health Tech

Staff: 119

Funding: €7.7 million (Dh31m)

 

Easter%20Sunday
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Jay%20Chandrasekhar%3Cbr%3EStars%3A%20Jo%20Koy%2C%20Tia%20Carrere%2C%20Brandon%20Wardell%2C%20Lydia%20Gaston%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

Analysis

Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more

Fourth Arab Economic and Social Development Summit

As he spoke, Mr Aboul Gheit repeatedly referred to the need to tackle issues affecting the welfare of people across the region both in terms of preventing conflict and in pushing development.
Lebanon is scheduled to host the fourth Arab Economic and Social Development Summit in January that will see regional leaders gather to tackle the challenges facing the Middle East. The last such summit was held in 2013. Assistant Secretary-General Hossam Zaki told The National that the Beirut Summit “will be an opportunity for Arab leaders to discuss solely economic and social issues, the conference will not focus on political concerns such as Palestine, Syria or Libya". He added that its slogan will be “the individual is at the heart of development”, adding that it will focus on all elements of human capital.