China said to ask Visa, Mastercard to cut transaction fees

China is pushing for Visa Inc and Mastercard Inc to lower their bank card transaction fees in the country, a person familiar with the matter said, as part of an effort to facilitate payments for foreign visitors.

The Payment & Clearing Association of China is negotiating with global card issuers including Visa and Mastercard on lowering fees local merchants are charged on foreign card transactions. The association proposed trimming the fee to 1.5 per cent from 2-3 per cent, the person said. The person requested anonymity discussing private matters.

The negotiations are ongoing and the fee cut details could change.

Mastercard acknowledged it has received the proposal from the industry association and pledged to work with partners in the payment industry to lower the costs for local merchants accepting foreign bank cards, according to a media representative of the firm. The industry association and Visa didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The industry group issued a proposal earlier this week to global card issuers on the fee cut, according to a statement posted on its website Tuesday that didn’t provide details of the price cut. Issuers were advised to coordinate with members on their network to implement preferential fees to boost the willingness of local merchants to accept foreign bank cards.

China’s retailers are increasingly digitised and cashless, but most merchants are reluctant to accept foreign bank cards because of the high processing fees. China is seeking to reduce the fees to make payment more convenient for foreign visitors, and in March the State Council urged local authorities to push more merchants to accept foreign cards.