Visa and Mastercard are American companies, and they essentially tax everybody by taking a percentage of purchase prices for themselves. Not exactly a small percentage either, 1.2% to 2.65%. Ever wonder why so many merchants say they don’t accept American Express? That’s because they charge quite a bit more to merchantes, 50% more than Visa or Mastercard. Anyway, we’re letting American companies tax us and we love them because we get rewards when we use cards. But it’s just a shell game because we pay more up front because businesses need to charge more to make up for payment processing charges. They get to sit in the middle and rake in the money.
Now the alternative in Canada is Interac. Interac charges a set amount per transcation. How much? 2 to 5.5 cents. Unless you’re going through Apple or Google Pay, and then it’s a percentage again.
Interac is also Canadian.
Want to stick it to Trump? Stop using credit cards (and Google Pay or Apple Pay) and switch to Interac. Want to make Canada better? Stop using credit cards and switch to Interac. Is it going to be inconvenient? Yes. Online shopping will be much harder but I have seen online Interac payments before and we can ask our favourite Canadian merchants to accept Interac online.
I nearly asked “What about American Express?”. Sometimes I wonder how I graduated kindergarten.
It’s okay, there are 35(?) countries I believe in America. 1 that gets talked about a lot. Being that they are discussing this from Canada in America, I’d say it’s safe to consider maybe American Express could have been from Canada. Mexico, Argentina, Brasil, and most other large countries in America aren’t English primary, so it would be harder to pass them off.
3 times in my life I took out a consolidation loan to corral all those costs and pay them off. Credit cards are both a blessing and a curse. Gov’t should provide credit services at a reasonable, non-compounding, interest rate.
Between credit card companies, finance companies and the banks, the interest they extract yearly would put all the space billionaires to shame.
YES, I ain’t even Canadian but been saying this since day, those 2 companies are such a huge factor in how much leverage this 2 party dictatorship has over majority of the world, that and Microsoft, Apple, Google etc. This is why Cash is King, and using American payment processors just feeds their power and leverage over global finance.
You can see how its affected Russia when US payment processors halted operations as part of sanctions. The only viable alternative is using Monero for online transactions and physical cash.
Monero is the only realistic and promising way of paying people online without relying on the two largest payment processors on the planet, fully under the control of the US. The ONLY crypto that’s actually treated and used as a currency, rather than a stock like btc, and actually has any real world use and offers privacy.
See, not using Google Pay is something even I, a non-Canadian, European person can do. doingmypart.jpg!
It’s been convenient to use my phone to tap and pay for things. But like, only slightly more than pulling out my debit card. Just got a new minimalistic wallet with a card ejector too so it’s kinda fun to use.
The Canadian banks are big enough to build a wholly Canadian credit system for global use, especially if they could get everyone in Canada (and maybe elsewhere) to switch right now.
They probably get too many incentives from Visa and Mastercard to find it enticing though, which is why they’re always pushing credit cards and offering cashback and airmiles, etc.
I think there is a European alternative being developed. Perhaps we can get in on that.
The Canadian banks are big enough to build a wholly Canadian credit system for global use
lol Canadian banks don’t even do their own credit analysis, and they rely on interac… they can’t even rollout the basics
I work for an American credit card company, and my advice is to ditch credit and debit cards entirely. Use cash.
Credit cards (when used correctly) is one of the few pro consumer products we have left.
Most cards come with fraud protection, something you cannot get with cash, checks, or gift cards.
Similarly, most cards come with purchase protections like extended warranties. I have a credit card that gives me free damage protection on my cell phone so long as I pay the monthly bill with it.
I’m not saying cash isn’t great but there are good reasons to use a credit card. At least for now.
I don’t think those benefits are worth it when you consider the cost of having your purchase history and personal data for sale to anyone who wants it.
Yeah one of the few fixes to our shitty situation is to end surveillance capitalism. It’s deconstructing our behaviors trending them and exploiting them vs ourselves and the people around us.
Cash becomes a component of a healthy surveillance free (ish) lifestyle. But you probably wouldn’t be posting on any internet site if you were all in on it enough for swapping over to cash to matter. haha.
Eh, the job comes with certain expectations, they don’t even have cash tills in the cafeteria.
I use my credit cards just enough to generate a plausibly normal profile, and cash for everything else.
I’ve been looking for a more ethical job, but the market for tech work is real fucked up right now…
As another American who works in the industry, it’s a wedding cake of frighteningly bad software piled on top of well-intentioned but poorly implemented mandates piled on top of willful ignorance frosted with solving problems people don’t actually have. And the little couple on top are both the capitalist pigman from a 1930s Soviet poster that we all recognize thanks to Hexbear :`(
I prefer cash too.
Canadian debit cards are very different than American cards.
I would love to hear your side of things. Cash is better for curbing impulse spending and it is of course anonymous but it is inconvenient. I feel like there’s a target on my back when I walk around with more than a couple hundred dollars.
If enough people know you’re carrying that much cash for it to be a potential issue, you’ve got other security issues that should honestly be your priority.
My personal opinion is that the convenience isn’t worth the unspoken costs, much less the overt ones. Credit card processors already charge merchant fees on top of the interest charged by the banks that issue those cards, but they also get all your personal data associated with that card. It’s more than enough to be worth selling to advertisers, so anyone who cares to spend a few bucks can buy your purchase history and build a profile. Name, address, contact info, the coffee shop you visit regularly and when you can be found there, the daycare you send your kids to, etc. It’s very not-safe, especially when the government decides your type of person is now unpersoned.
More fundamentally though, I think the problem comes down to money itself. The use of any form of currency as both a store of value and a medium of exchange creates a multitude of perverse incentives to the detriment of society. Families work best when money isn’t coming between them, and I think that principle is generalizable to our species as a whole.
Well, when on business trips, I can’t just have a bunch of cash with me, so I could pay for hotels and every eventuality
Is there any way around that?Best I can think of is taking a traveler’s check to a local bank or currency exchange.
Hm…ok, thanks
I’ll evaluate my alternatives
Also, sometimes buying something online, because I quickly need the hardware, only really works with credit cards.
All though real time money transfers at least start to speed up the traditional way …
There also is no middle-man with cash.
Checkbooks exist for a reason.
Ok now, let’s not go bringing back that nonsense. Cash is fine. You’re no more likely to be robbed than usual because you’re carrying a lot, and you can do what I do. If you need to carry a lot of money in cash, put $49 in your wallet and the rest in your sock.
I have carried $100-500 sometimes as high as $2k in my wallet for decades without a problem. Usually on the lower end of the 100-500 range unless I think I’ll need it.
This might be a problem for someone who can’t hold onto their belongings and leaves a trail of lost things everywhere they go. It might also be a problem for someone who lives in an area with high petty crime where they can expect to get jumped every once in a while. This is unlikely to be a problem for most people in the US states and European countries I’ve spent time in. Even in Argentina, which is not the safest place, I use cash exclusively.
As others have mentioned, when it starts getting into that $500-$1k range, you always have checks, wire transfers, Western Union, etc. I’m not selling out my privacy for a $5 bagel if I can help it.
I have never yet had a problem challenging and reversing a charge made to my credit card. Their fraud detection also seems to be superior. On the other hand, members of my family have had to jump through hoops when challenging fraudulent Interac transactions. They have felt like they are being seen as the more likely perpetrator, and meanwhile the money is no longer in their account while the process drags out. Very stressful.
In general, I prefer using cash because of less information being generated, but I agree that we shouldn’t pretend that CCs don’t also have advantages (if you’re not one to rack up debt). Smaller purchases where carrying cash is reasonable? Absolutely. Larger purchases where you need some insurance? CC.
The other day I made a purchase at a store and noticed I was charged for something I didn’t buy (not that something was charged twice, it was an entirely foreign item that wasn’t even physically there). The transaction had to be voided and then re-done. The cashier and the manager (who was needed to void the tx) both said it was good I had paid by credit instead of debit because it’s a lot harder even for them to return money via debit. I have no idea why, and neither did they.
Some years ago, Air Canada’s system said I didn’t pay for my flight when I tried to check in. But I was already on the manifest and had already been assigned a seat. How could I possibly have an assigned seat if I hadn’t paid? The desk agent was sympathetic but could not overrule the system, so I had to pay again for the seat that was already assigned to me. Air Canada could not refund the original payment because I supposedly had never paid it in the first place. I had to use a chargeback to get my money back. If not for CC chargeback, I would have lost that money entirely.
That airline sounds like the stereotypical corporate BS we’ve all grown used to now. Not asking in an asshole way, but because I want to understand: did you have a receipt?
I’m on board for this but this proposal is up against a familiar devil: the network effect.
Shops support Visa and Mastercard because customers use them, customers use them because shops support them. This creates a powerful network that is extremely difficult for an upstart to unseat.
So while it’s a good idea to encourage people to take individual action on this — and you’re doing a great job doing so, and I’m taking it to heart for my own actions — we also need to accompany this with a policy solution to help overcome the network effect.
You’re right and the network effect would be very hard to overcome for this. It would need a lot of media attention just like liquor and alcohol.
I whipped this up too.
This is super cool. And you’ve inspired this Canadian to start moving more payments to Interac. Love the message and I’m on board.
My suggestion to accompany this with policy is not an alternative to taking personal action, but complementary.
One piece of constructive feedback on the artwork— it might be helpful to stress the positive aspect front and centre. For example lead with Interac with a maple leaf, and the American systems in lower prominence by having them 2/3 sized and positioned below.
Please don’t misconstrue my feedback in your mind as an attempt to distract or demoralize you through bike-shedding or anything like that. You’re doing great stuff and it’s inspiring.
So glad I could inspire you! And I didn’t take any offense to your comments. I just kinda woke up angry this morning (my other pet peeve is unsynchronized traffic lights) and made this post. I suppose I could put some real work into making an image that can be shared. I like your ideas.
I feel you on that. I’ve been on a bit of a tear myself, spilling thousands of words on this site and Reddit and Bluesky in various posts and comments.
You have a point when it comes to online shopping (although I’d call it a simple monopoly), but there’s no such effect at physical stores. Interac and cash are already universally accepted, people can stop using visa/mastercard right now and not even have to think about it. Just grab a different card when you leave the house.
Needs to be a solution for those of us who are housebound and/or rural. Online is our only option.
You’re correct that it’s a monopoly, but the point I’m trying to make is that because of the network effect the monopoly will be difficult to unseat without accompanying policy.
I have a cash back VISA card. The week after Jan 20, I pulled my card info off every online service I use, stopped using the card entirely, and a few days ago canceled it completely. It was a tough choice. I generally earned about $600 a year cash back, but it’s time to free ourselves of America and forge our own path. I don’t really see the Can/American relationship ever being repaired at this point. Time to move on.
Ahh, so as an American my only option is cash. 😔
Cash is better for privacy too. Don’t be paying for that abortion, gun, or donation to environmental cause in this climate with Visa.
Not denying that. Most card purchases my family has is for groceries or clothing anyways.
A book here and there.
I don’t have much experience with American cards. I know debit cards are more common down there. Do they have the same merchant fees?
They’re usually also managed by visa and such. I can’t remember the exact numbers, but they have a higher initial fee and a lower percentage for a purchase.
I’ve given up taking visa / Amex / Mastercard. My business now only accepts Interac e-transfer and cash.
Interac is hands down the most secure way to pay for something. I never have to take a card from a customer, the customer never has to take on additional debt, the money is automatically deposited into my account within seconds, and it costs me absolutely no money to do this and I have to pay no money to a merchant to make it happen.
I wish I could do this at more places.
For this to work, Interac needs to incentivize using it like credit cards do.
All types of loans require a credit score of some kind, and credit cards are one of the best ways to build this. Additionally, credit cards usually offer some kind of return.
Also because of poverty, a lot of people have a dependency on credit or payment plans.
Interac needs to make a Canadian answer to the credit card.
I’m European. We don’t get credit card benefits, we just get stolen from. Everyone uses them nonetheless.
Oh wow no cash back at all??
What is it? You always pay the exact amount, why any cash (change) back?
On a lot of credit cards you get rewards for using them, like interest income. Basically the more you use it, the more interest you get, and you’ll get a credit in your account annually.
Some cards have different rewards like 2% back on all grocery spending for example.
Oh, we don’t have that. Nor air miles. Nor easy refunds.
I suppose the “richer” Europeans do though, I heard it referenced in an English movie of the same name.
Also, we never used checks, pretty much. Probably contributed to the explosion of CC use in the 90s despite the lack of benefits.
That’s very interesting, I learned something new today!
I’ve only ever used a debit card when I was in Europe. There was zero incentive to get a credit card. Moving in the US was different, I needed to build credit and cards were the best way.
Now I have a Prime card because 90%+ of my spending is on Amazon and at Whole Foods, both of which give 5% cash back. I get thousands every year, something really hard to give up. I wish I could stop giving Bezos money, but the convenience of Amazon is just too much of an advantage for me. And I know that shopping is now just a drop in their earnings compared to AWS.
Many credit cards in North America have a cash back or loyalty points scheme. In cash back, you essentially get a cut of the network fee back as virtual value to pay off your statement. With points, you earn the points based on the amount spent, and can redeem them for things like travel or gift cards. Some merchant categories earn more as an incentive (e.g. 2% of purchase value or 10 points per dollar for groceries and monthly automatic bills, 1% or 5 points on everything else).
Edit: Oh and I should mention, some offer complementary car and travel insurance benefits, airport lounge access, electronic device insurance too. So it’s definitely compelling for a lot of people, since >90% of places don’t offer cash discounts or CC Fee, so people would essentially get or lose the benefits with no difference in price.
Well, we get none of that, which is why most cards used here are debit cards despite all being colloquially known as “kreditky”.
You can get a line of credit from your local bank, tranfser the available funds into your checking account on demand, then use your Interac card. The amount and rates are variable, so you can start with a small amount with a high rate (like starter credit cards), and as you build a reputation, you can be loaned larger amounts at a better rate. No third party credit card company required.
Mileage may vary, but in my experience in attempting to get a line of credit, theres a lot more information that needs to be not only shared (for the banks and credit unions I’ve tried applying to, both and credit card statements for the last 3 months needed to be shared, along with a written explanation on what I’d need a line of credit for).
The barrier to approval is rather high as well, especially if you don’t have any assets to provide as collateral (for a secured line of credit at least.)
It’s doubly a challenge if you don’t have a “good enough” net worth as well which if you’re out of school and had to take out student loans, then you’re already starting out with negative net worth.
In comparison, I was blanketly approved for multiple credit cards and all I had to provide was the necessary identifying information and a salary.
It sounds like I’m shooting down the option of getting a line of credit, but it can be a very difficult process to obtain one unless you can get a guarantor to co-sign, or you happen to be in a financially secured position to begin with, which isn’t the case for a lot of people, but still a very good option to attempt at getting.
This is definitely one of the biggest hurdles with getting rid of credit cards, the lack of easy credit history.
Going the line of credit route is ok, but there’s no grace period before interest is charged, unlike most credit cards. So it’s something to be aware of.
Part of the problem for me is that paying interest to RBC, BMO, Scotiabank, TD, CIBC, BN in place of American payment networks when they aren’t really hurting for money, is not really helpful or impactful for anyone except for me in a negative way.
Credit unions do exist, and they keep money in the community much better than the big banks do.
The main reason to ditch Visa and Mastercard is hopefully if they get hit hard enough they’ll lean on Trump to shut up about annexing Canada. Greenland and Panama too.
There’s absolutely a way, for sure, I just mean it’s gonna be difficult to get most people on board until there is an option just as or more convenient than the current one.
Nationalize them! Bring this back under societal control and eliminate that tax.
Then SpaceX, Twitter, and Amazon.
Of course this assumes we defeat the fascists and fix the Supreme Court first.
I think this is spoken from the point of view of an American? Canada can’t nationalize American companies…
Canada could however fund its own federal credit system to compete and add a big fat tariff on MC and Visa tx’s if they wanted to force people to adopt it rapidly.
I have a terrible habit of forgetting which community I’m in.
Just like tipping, a percentage system makes no sense. It’s the exact same work to bring me a $50 meal vs a $500 one. And for payment processing, a flat fee makes much more sense because there’s no difference in processing a $100 transaction vs a $10,000 one.
So why does a percentage-based system persist? Because workers want higher wages (understandable when restaurants refuse to pay them more and expect the customer to pay part of their income). And for giant corporations like Visa and MasterCard, it’s literally never enough for them. They can make more money, so that’s the only reason. It’s so dumb…
Ah, but it’s a credit card, emphasis on credit. The bank issuing the card is making a short term loan that will either get paid off by the card holder at the next billing cycle, or will automatically turn into an indefinite length loan at what is usually an exorbitant interest rate.
The bank is always taking a risk that they won’t get paid. That’s why the amount they get paid for this risk needs to scale with the size of the transaction.
Debit card doesn’t have this specific risk; the money is either immediately transferred from the cardholder’s account or the transaction is declined.
This is a brilliant strategy. Thank you for sharing that.
