Interchange Fees: What They Are and How They Shape Your Payments

When you swipe, tap, or insert a credit or debit card, a small fee moves behind the scenes — that’s the interchange fee, a payment network charge paid by the merchant’s bank to the cardholder’s bank for each transaction. Also known as card network fees, it’s the invisible cost that keeps the whole system running — and it’s built into every price you pay. You won’t see it on your receipt, but it’s there, quietly adding up across millions of transactions every day.

These fees are set by networks like Visa and Mastercard, and they vary based on the card type (debit vs. credit), how it’s processed (in-store vs. online), and even the type of business. A coffee shop pays a different rate than a car dealership. And while merchants absorb most of it, they pass the cost on to you — often in higher prices or minimum purchase requirements. That’s why your local grocer might charge extra for credit cards, or why some apps charge convenience fees. Interchange fees also tie into bigger systems like payment processing, the infrastructure that moves money between banks during a transaction, and merchant fees, the total cost businesses pay to accept cards, which includes interchange plus processor markup. When these fees rise, it ripples through fintech platforms, neobanks, and even BNPL services that rely on card networks to function.

What you’ll find in this collection are real breakdowns of how these fees work — not theory, but what’s happening right now. You’ll see how SoFi and other digital banks handle them, how they affect small businesses, and why some fintech startups are trying to bypass them entirely. You’ll also learn how regulators are stepping in, why some merchants are pushing back, and what it means for your wallet. Whether you run a business, use apps for payments, or just wonder why your coffee costs $6, these posts give you the unfiltered truth behind the numbers.