Winners and losers

Winners and losers

Columbus Dispatch: Congress hailed it as a victory for consumers last year when it decided to impose price controls on banks, capping “swipe” fees they charge merchants for debit-card transactions.

In reality, what Congress imposed was a new monthly tax on debit-card users.

Bank of America recently announced it will charge its debit-card users a $5 monthly fee in an effort to offset billions of dollars of revenue lost to Congress’ intervention. Wells Fargo, the country’s biggest bank, is testing a $3 monthly fee for debit cards later this month. And Chase has piloted a $5 fee in Wisconsin.

The new debit-card fees are another example of why government should not pick losers and winners in the marketplace: The likeliest loser is the consumer.