Congress·In Committee·H.R. 7035

Congress Proposes Bill to Lower Credit Card Fees by Forcing Competition Between Payment Networks

Credit Card Competition Act of 2026

2 months ago·View on Congress.gov

Legislative Progress

House

Senate

President

Law

Key Points

This bill, introduced by Congress, aims to lower the fees businesses pay when customers swipe credit cards. It requires large banks with over $100 billion in assets to offer at least two different networks to process transactions on their credit cards.
Currently, most cards only use one network, often Visa or Mastercard. Under this plan, a card could not just offer those two giants; it would have to include a second, smaller network option. This gives store owners the power to choose the cheapest or most efficient path for your payment.
The goal is to create more competition, which could lead to lower costs for stores. Supporters hope these savings will be passed down to shoppers in the form of lower prices for groceries, gas, and other everyday items.
The bill also bans banks from using special security technology to block smaller networks from handling a transaction. It ensures that security features work across different networks so that competition does not come at the cost of safety.
The Federal Reserve would be responsible for creating a list of networks that are considered national security risks or are owned by foreign governments. Those specific networks would be banned from being used in the U.S. credit card system.

Economy FinanceTechnology Digital

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Who is affectedScoreImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Broader Impacts

DomainScoreShort-termLong-termReversibilityConfidence

Score

Scores: -5 (harmful) to +5 (beneficial)Short-term: 0-2 yearsLong-term: 10-30 years

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

Jan 13, 2026House

Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.

Jan 13, 2026

Introduced in House

Related News

3 articles

Washington Post·2 months ago

Trump was right about price controls, until he embraced them

President Trump's flirtation with controlling markets is just getting started. On Jan. 13, Trump endorsed the Credit Card Competition Act, which would force large banks to route transactions through at least one network other than Visa and Mastercard.

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Reason Magazine·2 months ago

The Bipartisan War on Prices Is Coming for Your Credit Card

The Credit Card Competition Act, which Durbin sponsors and Trump recently endorsed, is an attempt to reduce credit card fees by compelling the Federal Reserve to require that banks add at least one additional payment network for their cards.

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The Food Institute·2 months ago

With Trump's Support, the Credit Card Competition Act Has Legs

The bipartisan legislation pits merchants against banks in an effort aimed at lowering credit card swipe fees. This time, President Donald Trump made a public announcement supporting the bill, giving the measure significant new political momentum.

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