What Your Processor Won't Tell You About Rate Increases

Every credit card processor will raise your rates at some point. Interchange rates change, network fees increase, and processors adjust their margins. The issue is not that rates go up — it is how and when your processor communicates these changes, and whether the increases are fair.

The Buried Notice Strategy

Many processors announce rate increases through a short paragraph buried in the middle of your monthly statement or in a separate notice that arrives as junk mail. By the time you notice, the new rates have already been in effect for one or two billing cycles. Always read every page of your statement and every piece of correspondence from your processor.

Non-Negotiable vs. Processor Increases

There are two types of rate increases. Network increases from Visa, Mastercard, and other brands are passed through to all merchants and are genuinely non-negotiable. Processor markup increases are entirely at the processor's discretion and are absolutely negotiable. Your processor may frame their own markup increase as a "network adjustment" to discourage pushback. Always verify by checking the published interchange tables.

The Effective Date Trick

Some processors apply increases retroactively or with very short notice periods. Your contract should specify a minimum notice period for rate changes — typically 30 days. If you receive a rate increase notice with an effective date that has already passed, your processor may be in breach of your agreement.

Across-the-Board vs. Targeted Increases

Sophisticated processors target rate increases toward merchants who are least likely to notice or complain — typically smaller businesses without dedicated financial oversight. Larger accounts with active management receive better treatment because the processor knows they are more likely to push back or switch.

Your Right to Negotiate

You always have the right to challenge a rate increase. Contact your processor, reference the specific increase, and ask for it to be reversed or reduced. If you have a competitive quote from another provider, present it as leverage. Processors retain merchants at lower margins far more often than they admit — the cost of losing your account exceeds the revenue from the rate increase.

Build Rate Monitoring Into Your Routine

Track your effective rate monthly. Any increase of more than 0.05% in a single month warrants investigation. Mogil Partners monitors processing costs for our clients and proactively flags rate increases so they can be addressed immediately. Contact us to learn about our ongoing monitoring services.