eBay, the prominent online marketplace, announced it will stop accepting American Express due to what it describes as “unacceptably high fees,” asserting that customers have alternative payment options for online shopping.
This decision deals a significant blow to American Express, which typically attracts high-spending customers.
However, eBay is not the first to push back against AmEx’s practices, as Costco also discontinued AmEx acceptance nearly a decade ago.
“eBay has decided to stop accepting American Express worldwide starting August 17 because of the high fees associated with processing these transactions,” stated eBay spokesman Scott Overland.
He added that eBay customers have adopted new payment methods, rendering AmEx unnecessary.
eBay now offers buy now, pay later options through Apple Pay, PayPal, Klarna, and Affirm.
Tensions between online merchants and payment processors over transaction fees have been growing.
Amazon faced a similar issue with Visa in the UK two years ago, threatening to drop Visa over high fees. The dispute was eventually resolved without disrupting services.
American Express, like other processors, charges a percentage of each transaction, with fees varying by industry and kept confidential for large merchants.
In response, AmEx stated that their fees are comparable to other networks and highlighted that their cardmembers spend twice as much as users of other cards.
Adam Isserlis, a spokesman for AmEx, criticized eBay’s decision, arguing it contradicts eBay’s stated goal of increasing competition at the point of sale.
