Mizuho ‘less celebratory’ on report of Visa, MasterCard raising fees

Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev is “less celebratory” than the market after the Wall Street Journal reported that Visa (V) and MasterCard (MA) are planning to increase fees they charge to merchants for credit card acceptance. Raising network fees may draw increased regulatory and political scrutiny, while merchants have started to push back on high acquiring costs, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm adds that rising card fees may only accelerate the adoption of FedNow and other payment alternatives like Venmo or Cash App that are aiming to disrupt traditional debit. It keeps a Neutral rating on Visa and Buy rating on MasterCard.