The Honor All Cards rule enables a worldwide payment system such as MasterCard® to exist. By assuring consumers that their MasterCard cards will be accepted anywhere in the world a MasterCard logo is displayed, the rule is a cornerstone of the MasterCard payment system. In fact, open member associations MasterCard and Visa and proprietary card issuers American Express and Discover, as well as the regional ATM systems, all are grounded in similar rules.

The Honor All Cards rule is pro-competitive and benefits consumers, merchants and the member financial institutions of MasterCard International

For consumers, the rule assures that:

• Consumers' MasterCard cards will be accepted at any of the 24.6 million acceptance locations around the world, including over 1 million ATMs and other locations where cash can be obtained
• Consumers have the flexibility to choose from among a wide variety of payment options to decide how they want to pay for goods and services
• Consumers don't have to worry about whether their card might be accepted—regardless of what bank issues it, what type of card it is, or what company or organization it is associated with
• Consumers in the United States have the broadest choice of payment methods in the world, including thousands of types of MasterCard-branded payment cards

For member banks, the rule enables them to:

• Continue offering consumers new payment card options that provide a variety of choice and rewards Issue cards with the knowledge that those cards will enjoy widespread utility and universal acceptance

For merchants, the rule:

• Provides the foundation for the worldwide system which guarantees payment to merchants, no matter what type of MasterCard-branded card a consumer uses
• Ensures that consumers have the widest range of payment options available, which has demonstrably helped increase merchants' sales and profitability

What's at Stake

The Honor All Cards rule ensures that every MasterCard cardholder, regardless of what type of card they choose to use, can purchase goods and services at any participating merchant, anywhere in the world. Without it, cardholders would lose the security of knowing that the MasterCard card they hold will necessarily be accepted and financial institutions would find it more difficult to offer a broad range of payment options to consumers. By undermining the benefits of universal acceptance, merchants will threaten the benefits that the Honor All Cards rule provides.