Interchange, scheme, acquirer: who takes what?

The short answer

Every time a card pays in your business, the fee is typically split three ways: interchange to the bank that issued the customer's card, a scheme fee to the card network (Visa or Mastercard) and the acquirer's margin to the provider you have an agreement with. The first two are more or less the same for every acquirer. The third layer is the only one your provider decides itself — and therefore the only one you're really negotiating over.

The three layers in every card fee

1. 1. Interchange — to the customer's bank.
   The biggest bite on most transactions. Paid to the bank that issued the customer's card, as compensation for providing the card, the credit line and fraud handling.
2. 2. Scheme fee — to the card network.
   Visa and Mastercard take a network fee for moving the transaction between the customer's bank and your acquirer. It's a smaller layer, but it has grown steadily in recent years — and it's the same for everyone who uses the network.
3. 3. Acquirer margin — to your acquirer.
   What your acquirer earns. Covers risk, operations, support and profit. This layer is the only one that varies from provider to provider, and the only one a "good offer" can actually shift.

Interchange: regulated — but not for all cards

In 2015 the EU capped interchange for ordinary consumer cards issued in the EU: 0,2 % of the transaction for debit cards and 0,3 % for credit cards. That's why a Danish Visa debit card is among the cheapest cards to accept.

But the cap does not apply to all cards:

• Commercial cards (company cards) are exempt from the cap and typically cost considerably more.
• Cards issued outside the EU — the tourist's American credit card — aren't covered either.

That's exactly why your card mix matters so much for your overall price: a café on a tourist street and a B2B warehouse with company-card customers have completely different costs behind them, even with the same turnover.

Blended or interchange++: two ways to get the bill

Acquirers typically price in one of two ways:

• Blended: a single combined percentage rate for everything. Easy to understand, but the three layers are baked together, so you can't see what the acquirer actually earns — or whether you're overpaying for your specific card mix.
• Interchange++ (IC++): the card network's actual costs (interchange + scheme) are passed on 1:1, and the acquirer's margin is added on top as a separate, fixed number. More lines on the settlement — but full transparency about who takes what.

Neither model is "a con" in itself. But with blended you have to ask more questions, because the number you see doesn't tell you what's cost and what's margin.

How to read your own settlement

Find your latest settlement and look for three things:

1. Is the fee shown as one number or several? One number = blended. Several lines with "interchange" and "scheme" = IC++. Now you know which model you're on.
2. Is there a difference between card types? Check whether commercial cards and foreign cards are settled at a different (higher) rate — and whether that rate was in your offer when you signed.
3. Are there lines you can't explain? "Service fee", "administration fee", a fee per refund, a minimum fee in quiet months. Every line you don't understand is a question for your provider.

Five questions that get real answers

No matter who you're talking to — us included — these are the questions that separate a real offer from a sales trick:

• 1 What is your margin — separated from the card network's costs?
• 2 Does the rate apply to all card types, including commercial cards and cards from outside the EU?
• 3 What does a refund, a chargeback and a quiet month cost?
• 4 Is there a setup fee, lock-in or termination fee?
• 5 May I see an example settlement before I sign?

If a provider can't answer those five clearly, you know everything you need to.