Credit Card Competition Act of 2026
Sponsored By: Senator Sen. Marshall, Roger [R-KS]
Introduced
Summary
Promote competition in credit card networks by forcing the Federal Reserve Board to write rules that ban exclusive network arrangements and routing limits for many credit cards. It would also require public transparency about networks tied to foreign state entities and carve out traditional three‑party card systems.
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- Large card issuers. Card issuers with more than $100 billion in assets would be barred from forcing exclusive use of a single network or penalizing routing choices. The Fed's rules would take effect 180 days after each final rule.
- Merchants and cardholders. Checkouts could offer more routing choices and networks could not block competitors by requiring security technologies not usable by all networks.
- National security and oversight. The Fed must publish and update at least every 2 years a public list of payment networks tied to foreign states or national security risks. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau would not enforce these rules.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
More competition for credit card networks
If enacted, the bill would require the Federal Reserve Board to write rules within 1 year on credit card routing. The rules would bar covered issuers from forcing a card to use only one network. A "covered card issuer" would mean firms with more than $100 billion in assets. The Fed would publish a public list, with Treasury, of payment networks that pose national security risks within 1 year and update it at least every 2 years. The rules would not apply to three‑party cards, affiliated networks, or networks on the national‑security list. The bill would also say the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau cannot enforce these new routing rules. Each set of Fed rules would take effect 180 days after the final version is issued, and the Fed would reassess a two‑network market test every 3 years.
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Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Sen. Marshall, Roger [R-KS]
KS • R
Cosponsors
Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
IL • D
Sponsored 1/13/2026
Peter Welch
VT • D
Sponsored 1/13/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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