WASHINGTON–In support of the Credit Card Competition Act, which is strongly opposed by credit union, the Merchants Payments Coalition has launched a new TV commercial that warns there is “no bar to China’s payment network processing Americans’ credit card data” unless Congress passes the bill.
The 30-second ad and similar digital banner ads are running in Washington and targeted markets around the country.
The legislation seeks to lower credit card interchange costs to merchants by providing additional payments rails.
The campaign follows a letter MPC sent to Congress last fall warning that Visa and Mastercard “have put our payments at risk” through increasingly close ties with China, the association noted.
The MPC said China’s involvement in the U.S. payments system dates to 2010, when Mastercard and China UnionPay signed an agreement to “explore business opportunities.”
‘Welcome to the Family’
“Visa and Mastercard brought China UnionPay, a card network controlled by the Chinese government, into the governing body of EMVco in 2013 and the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council in 2017,” MPC said. “The two groups, which are controlled by Visa and Mastercard, set security rules for the U.S. credit card system and a Visa executive said his company was ‘delighted’ to have UnionPay as a member while a Mastercard executive welcomed China UnionPay to the ‘family’.”
The MPC further said there is currently no law that prevents Visa, Mastercard or any of the banks that issue credit cards under their brands from working with China UnionPay.
“But the CCCA would take the first step by prohibiting China UnionPay or any other foreign state owned or sponsored payment network from being used on U.S. credit cards,” the organization said. “The prohibition would keep banks from exposing Americans’ sensitive financial data to foreign governments by routing U.S. credit card transactions over foreign networks.”
‘Consumer Alert’
“This is a consumer protection alert – your personal financial data is at risk,” an announcer says in the commercial as a warning buzzer sounds and a Chinese government official reviews troops from a moving car. “Visa and Mastercard are working with China to rewrite security standards for your financial data. If we do nothing, a company controlled by the Chinese Community Party could soon be processing your payments and accessing your data.”
‘It Has to be Stopped’
The voiceover in the commercial states, “It has to be stopped,” the announcer says as a Chinese flag waves and computers flash ‘Breach Detected’ onscreen. “The Credit Card Competition Act would block China's access to American credit cards. Tell Congress to protect your data now.”
Credit unions have joined with other financial services trade groups in adamantly seeking to block the Credit Card Competition Act.
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