Online marketplace eBay announced it will no longer support American Express card payments due to their high transaction fees. eBay said its decision to end Amex payments was made in part because customers have so many alternatives.
The company has been adapting to the payments space, offering various methods like Apple Pay and PayPal, and more recently, buy now, pay later services through Klarna and Affirm. Believing its customers are savvy to the new payments landscape, eBay feels it’s no longer necessary to partner with American Express.
The move might signal a shift in sentiment on Amex customers, who have long been considered a reliable, strong-spending customer base. While eBay might save on interchange fees in the short-term, there could be ramifications from the decision.
“American Express is well-established with consumers who carry strong FICO Scores and have plenty of disposable cash,” said Brian Riley, Director of Credit and Co-Head of Payments at Javelin Strategy & Research. “Walking away from American Express for payment acceptance will likely cost eBay in the long run when you do the math.”
Unacceptably High
Merchants and credit card companies have had a long-running contention over interchange fees. The highly-publicized $30 billion settlement between Visa and Mastercard and merchants was considered a win for retailers. However, the settlement only reduced interchange fees by 0.04% in the end, making the victory more symbolic than substantive.
eBay’s leadership asserted American Express’s transaction fees, which are more than Visa’s and Mastercard’s, are “unacceptably high.” The online marketplace said Amex continues to keep its fees high despite improved technology, better fraud detection, and stronger customer protections.
Competing at the Point of Sale
eBay will stop accepting American Express payments in August, but users can still make purchases using Amex cards connected to their PayPal wallets. In a statement to TechRadar, American Express said it was disappointed by eBay’s move to limit customers’ payment choices.
“We find eBay’s decision to drop American Express as a payment choice for consumers to be inconsistent with their stated desire to increase competition at the point of sale,” American Express said. “Additionally, eBay represents less than 0.2% of our total network volume. American Express card members can continue to use their cards with millions of merchants around the world.”