Amazon will stop accepting Visa credit cards issued in the UK from next year because of the high transaction fees charged by the payment processor, the ecommerce giant said on Wednesday.
“As a result of Visa’s continued high cost of payments, we regret that Amazon.co.uk will no longer accept UK-issued Visa credit cards as of January 19th, 2022,” an Amazon spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
Amazon customers can still use Visa debit cards, Mastercard and Amex credit cards, and Eurocard, the company said in a note to its customers.
“We are very disappointed that Amazon is threatening to restrict consumer choice in the future,” a Visa spokesperson said in a statement.
“We continue to work toward a resolution, so our cardholders can use their preferred Visa credit cards at Amazon UK without Amazon-imposed restrictions come January 2022.”
Since Brexit, an EU-enforced cap on fees charged by card issuers is no longer in place in the UK.
The move by Amazon, earlier reported by Bloomberg News, has prompted the UK Trade and Business Commission to call on the British government to improve the UK-EU Brexit trade agreement and analysts to call on British regulators to look into the fees in the credit card market.
"If Amazon can't make it work, with all their resources and ability to navigate legislation to avoid costs, then small businesses have no chance, and so the government must improve the UK-EU trade and co-operation agreement to keep British businesses competitive," said Tamara Cincik from the UK Trade and Business Commission. – Reuters
