The Center for Regulatory Effectiveness Advises Federal Reserve to Accept its Cybersecurity Responsibilities In Setting Debit Interchange Fees

WASHINGTON, May 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- In a letter to the Federal Reserve's Chief Information Officer, http://www.thecre.com/premium/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/CRE-FederalReserve-CIOLetter.pdf , the Center for Regulatory Effectiveness (CRE) explained that the Dodd-Frank bill requires that the agency adjust allowable interchange fees to account for the full costs of maintaining data security for debit card financial transactions.  As the letter notes, debit card issuers have incurred significant costs because of third-party cybersecurity breaches -- costs that issuers need to be covered by interchange fees.

CRE's letter also highlighted the significance of the White House's just-proposed legislation which would impose federal cybersecurity regulations on financial institutions and other critical infrastructure.

CRE requested that the CIO advise the Board on the relevant cybersecurity costs.

SOURCE Center for Regulatory Effectiveness