Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Switzerland’s Competition Commission (ComCo) wants credit card companies to reduce interchange fees in the hope that overall fees will come down for users. The provisional measure is set to bring Swiss fees in line with those in European Union, and comes into force in February, Comco announced 28 January.

The interchange fee is paid to the card issuer by the acquirer, generally a bank that concludes a contract with a business that accepts credit cards from its customers. The fees are included in the merchant’s overall fees, and passed on to the customer.

Comco Chairman to step down

ComCo’s chairman, Walter Stoffel, has announced that he is stepping down 30 June after 12 years at the head of the independent federal Competition Commission. Stoffel is a law professor from Fribourg, who has headed the commission part-time. The watchdog is under political pressure to soften its stance towards companies, reports Le Temps, and though there are moves to make the post of chairman a full-time job, there is no guarantee that this will happen any time soon.

Links to other sites: Le  Temps, NZZ

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