Payments giant Mastercard is to be investigated by Switzerland’s competition authority, as part of a probe into whether the firm has broken rules on transactions using other banks’ high street cash machines.
SIX’s National Cash Scheme is a new set of rules for cash withdrawals, balance enquiries and other transactions made using the country’s ATM network, which the Swiss Competition Commission (COMCO) alleged Mastercard may be obstructing.
“The obstruction occurs because Mastercard refuses to co-badge the NCS on the new debit Mastercard,” the regulator said in a 16 February statement, referring to the practice of including two or more brands or applications on a debit card.
“COMCO is now investigating whether Mastercard has abused its position as a dominant company. Precautionary measures were taken for the duration of the investigation,” it added.
The investigation was triggered after SIX claimed that Mastercard was allegedly hindering the NCS from entering the market, COMCO said.
Mastercard was contacted for comment.
Mastercard is currently embroiled in the UK’s first ever class action suit, which has accused the firm of overcharging more than 46 million people over a 15-year period to the tune of £14bn.
READMastercard loses £14bn class action appeal at UK’s Supreme Court
The payments firm lost its appeal at the Supreme Court in December last year. The case is being brought by the Financial Ombudsman Service’s former chief Walter Merricks, who argued Mastercard imposed unfair fees on all transactions using its card network between 1992 and 2007.
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