Originally Posted by
Phantom707
They're trying to make the distinction between any fee that Barclay would charge versus any fee that Mastercard would charge. Effectively, you do pay 1% "extra", so yeah, it does suck.
Agree ... Welcome to the duopoly of MC & VISA. They have to make money too, and without them, your card can not be accepted internationally. This duopoly was actually created by the banks who created MC & VISA and then sold it in an IPO to the world. So in the end, it is NOT Barclays who is charging us that 1%. There are also many ways banks (Acceptance and Issuing are two different businesses sometimes controlled by same banks) make money internationally, like DCC when abroad. Lots of people do not know, and ask to be charged in USD when in places like Europe, instead of Euros. We, as a community, are more informed and try to avoid all these. I even have friends who use their US issued Debit Cards when traveling to Europe, because that is all they know how to do, and do not care. But yes, there is MC & VISA (and Amex as a processor/acquirer and not issuer) who get to charge and make money without having the risk of issuing loans. So in the end, it is NOT Barclays that is charging that 1%. Barclays says it charges 0% in that email. And I am not saying it is OK for MC to charge it, I am just saying it is not the bank and it is the network or brand (MC). Some banks might eat that 1% fee from MC, because their products are not used as much outside the US, some others might not, as they have to pay it to MC or VISA and do not want to absorb the cost.