Debit Card Fees Bank of America

Debit Card Fees Bank of America
New federal rules debit card will not be in the game until Saturday. However, Bank of America wasted no time in announcing a $ 5 per month for debit card purchases to offset the expected decline in revenue.

These rules limit how much banks can process transactions with debit cards. The payments are now an average of 44 cents per sale and pay the merchants. Later Saturday, the banks can not implement a surcharge of 21 cents.

The Federal Reserve has determined that it is a "reasonable and proportional" amount, which reflects how much it actually costs the banks to process a debit card transaction.

For its part, BofA is estimated that these new rules, you pay about $ 2 billion dollars a year in lost revenue. Industrial, processing fees took $ 19 billion to banks in 2009, according to Nilson Report, which monitors the card fees.

So here comes a fee of $ 5 to use a debit card, into force early next year, if you make a purchase or 100 per month

Anne Peace, BOFA spokesman, said the new settings have changed, "the economy to offer a debit card."

She said customers rely on services such as protection against fraud and discovered, and services that may not be offered for free. "Convenience has a price," said Pace.

But let's stop and think for a second. The Fed said that 21 cents is a good deal for banks to charge for sales of debit card processing. Bank of America is not saying that's going to lose money by charging that amount.

What it really says is that it will receive less money from debit cards by having to apply a reasonable rate. And apparently, the bank can not have the stomach to tell shareholders that their pockets will not be rounded as much as before.

So customers with heavy slaps tariffs - $ 60 a year - to keep cash flowing in

Put down: BOFA has 57 million consumer and small business accounting. If most of them use prepaid cards, we are talking about a windfall of about $ 3 billion a year - or $ 1 billion more than in BOFA is currently absent from the service.

Meanwhile, Wells Fargo is ready to begin testing at a cost of $ 3 per month by debit card in Georgia, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. Chase is testing a similar tax in Wisconsin.

"We have saved the banks, and now they want more money?" asked Susan Kirk, who received his services in California BOFA card. "These people are just greedy."

At least Kirk and about 1 million other Californians unemployment benefits through BOFA bank can take comfort that the new $ 5 fee does not concern them. Employee Development at the State Department said the monthly fee does not apply to beneficiaries.

The bank said it will not hit people with fees for transactions at the counter, or if they do not use their debit cards to purchase. It will not shake you down if you have your mortgage BOFA or at least $ 20,000 in total assets at the bank.

But many people will be unable to dodge the bullet. These are the people who have no additional $ 20 000 sitting in the bank. These are the people who burned their fingers by using credit cards moved slightly instead of credit cards.

These are the people who bought the line the banks, the bank is a state-of-the-art amenities, and that this is a more efficient and environmentally friendly to spend money using checks.

Pace asked Bank of America is really how much it costs the bank to process a debit card transaction. She refused to answer.

I asked how much it costs to provide the bank fraud and overdraft protection. She refused to answer.

I simply asked for the number of users of debit cards the bank. He refused to answer.

However, Pace said that BOFA is "trying to be clear and transparent with customers" about the allegations.

The problem, of course, is that by BofA and other banks the truth about how much is actually in the process of plastic, and the provision of related services, others must speak for that. Fed says 21 cents is a realistic payment by debit card sales.

Some consumer advocates say the real cost to banks, thanks to the enormous amount of automated transactions processed daily, is closer to a penny or two.

From this perspective, the sauce is $ 5 per month pure.

In other words, Bank of America is not just to have their cake and eat it too. He used a different song.