There\u2019s renewed political pressure in the U.S. to cap credit card interest rates (at least temporarily). In response, major banks have explored the idea of new cards around ~10% APR<\/strong>, likely with fewer rewards\/perks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Merchant pressure is back in headlines, with reports of potential Visa\/Mastercard settlement terms aimed at lowering or freezing some fees. This matters because interchange funds rewards<\/strong>, so any fee compression can reshape rewards cards over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the UK, there\u2019s also a big legal\/regulatory battle over cross-border interchange fee caps<\/strong>\u2014showing how contested card fees are outside the U.S., too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead of sending customers to BNPL apps, issuers are making installments inside the credit card<\/strong> (post-purchase \u201cpay later\u201d). Recent reporting shows installment usage rising sharply versus 2025, suggesting this is becoming mainstream behavior, not niche.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Payments security teams are warning that AI is making fraud cheaper and more scalable<\/strong>, especially identity-based attacks and scam tactics that mimic real customer behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The CFPB\u2019s proposed cap on late fees was vacated<\/strong>, so late-fee economics remain largely in issuers\u2019 hands\u2014another reason consumers feel card costs aren\u2019t easing<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ) APR cap talk + \u201cno-frills\u201d low-rate cards There\u2019s renewed political pressure in the U.S. to cap credit […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2982,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2981","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"yoast_head":"\n2) Interchange (\u201cswipe fees\u201d) fights intensify<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
3) \u201cPay over time\u201d becomes a built-in credit card feature<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
4) AI-driven scams and identity attacks surge<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
5) Late-fee rules (US) swung back<\/h3>\n\n\n\n