Electronic Transactions Association Releases Guiding Principles for Card Network Rule Changes
The Electronic Transactions Association (ETA) has released a set of guiding principles that the association has asked the major card networks to follow when issuing future rule changes or adjustments to operating requirements.
The document was developed by the ETA Industry Relations Committee and was subject to review and comment by the association’s membership, prior to approval by the board of directors in late January.
The Electronic Transactions Association has released formal policy positions with regard to issues which are important to the payments industry and, in particular, to reflect the broad interests of its members. The policy positions were reaffirmed by a vote of ETA's Board of Directors in January 2011.
As a recognized and valuable stakeholder in the payments system, the ETA has developed these policy positions with input from ETA’s members and reflect the association’s commitment to promote the growth and integrity of the transaction processing industry in a cooperative effort with each of the card brands.
ETA Seeks More Efficient Compliance Communication from Card Companies
Responding members’ request for assistance, ETA collected and analyzed data related to the communication of rate, technical and operational change orders from the four major card companies. The results identified several significant problems associated with timely and full communication of implementation requirements. The ETA Board of Directors sent a letter to Visa (PDF) in October 2008 outlining these challenges and requesting the opportunity to work toward mutually beneficial solutions. Visa replied by inviting further dialogue to resolve these issues. ETA sent a similar letter to MasterCard (PDF), including an acknowledgment of the company's recent efforts to address ETA member's concerns. Letters also were sent to American Express (PDF) and Discover (PDF) , asking them to consider these important compliance matters as they increase their presence in the acquiring realm.
