Cards allowing you to consolidate and defer expenses on a given date are now less expensive than immediate debit cards, according to a study by the Observatory of banking tariffs (OTB). And the banks would not lose out in this situation.
In a study published on Wednesday 16 February by the Observatory of banking tariffs (OTB), which depends on the Banque de France, it appears that the average annual fee for deferred debit payment cards is now lower than that for a debit card. immediate debit payment. According to the statement of the rates applied, taken on January 5, 2022 from around a hundred French banks, the first would cost on average 42.53 euros against 42.70 for seconds.
According to Capitaldeferred debit payment cards were historically more expensive – up to 10 euros difference a few years ago – because of their practicality.
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Convergence justified by the interbank fee
As a reminder, they allow customers to group together and move their expenses to the end or the beginning of the month, which gives them the possibility of making substantial purchases and waiting for the receipt of their salary to honor them. Conversely, immediate debit cards have a one- or two-day delay before applying the payment.
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According to our colleagues, this convergence of average annual contributions between these two types of cards is explained by the interest that banks find in them. Indeed, the interbank commission, ie the fees charged by the customer’s bank to that of the merchant, is capped at 0.3% for deferred debit compared to 0.2% for immediate debit.
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Multiplied by the abysmal number of transactions carried out each year, this difference of 0.1% can constitute a non-negligible turnover for the banks. This explains the gradual increase in recent years in the cost of the average charge for immediate debit payment cards in order to encourage customers to opt for deferred debit.
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