Credit card company MasterCard said Monday that it will charge five times more in so-called interchange fees for UK customers buying online goods and services from EU companies following Brexit.
"As a result of the UK leaving the European Economic Area (EEA), MasterCard will adapt interchange rates on UK cards," the group said in a statement.
When a customer pays a merchant with a credit or debit card, the store's bank pays an "interchange fee" to the cardholder's bank.
Card operators then collect the fees on behalf of banks to process the transaction.
MasterCard stressed that the interchange fee increase would only apply to online sales and would not affect in-store transactions.
The group will raise the credit card fee to 1.5 per cent of the value of each transaction starting October 15, compared with the current level of 0.3 per cent.
The debit card fee will be raised to 1.15 per cent, up from 0.2 per cent.
MasterCard added that consumers "should not feel any impact of changes in interchange fees", and that its own commissions would remain unchanged.
Main competitor Visa has not yet made any announcement on its fee structure.
After Visa, MasterCard is the second largest credit card issuer in the European market.
Britain finalised its divorce from the European Union on January 1, but the nation's hard-fought Brexit trade deal did not encompass the financial services sector.
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
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Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
If you go
Flight connections to Ulaanbaatar are available through a variety of hubs, including Seoul and Beijing, with airlines including Mongolian Airlines and Korean Air. While some nationalities, such as Americans, don’t need a tourist visa for Mongolia, others, including UAE citizens, can obtain a visa on arrival, while others including UK citizens, need to obtain a visa in advance. Contact the Mongolian Embassy in the UAE for more information.
Nomadic Road offers expedition-style trips to Mongolia in January and August, and other destinations during most other months. Its nine-day August 2020 Mongolia trip will cost from $5,250 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, two nights’ hotel accommodation in Ulaanbaatar, vehicle rental, fuel, third party vehicle liability insurance, the services of a guide and support team, accommodation, food and entrance fees; nomadicroad.com
A fully guided three-day, two-night itinerary at Three Camel Lodge costs from $2,420 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, accommodation, meals and excursions including the Yol Valley and Flaming Cliffs. A return internal flight from Ulaanbaatar to Dalanzadgad costs $300 per person and the flight takes 90 minutes each way; threecamellodge.com
