Merchant Choice Routing
Save on debit card transaction costs
Merchant Choice Routing or MCR can help reduce the cost for businesses to accept debit card payments, by allowing them to send transactions through the lowest cost network (also referred to as Least-cost Routing or LCR). With debit card usage in Australia now representing over 75%¹ of all card payments, MCR can help businesses manage their costs.
How does MCR work?
When a consumer pays with a multi-network debit (MND) card, the transaction can be processed on either eftpos or an international card network. Most merchants can enable Merchant Choice Routing (MCR), which allows transactions to be routed through their preferred network. This is typically on the lower cost debit network (also known as Least-cost Routing or LCR).
If MCR is not enabled, the transaction is processed on the default card network, which may be more expensive for the merchant. Additionally, if a consumer explicitly selects an account (such as SAV or CHQ on a terminal), or card network (which is available in some digital wallets), the consumer’s choice overrides the merchant’s routing preference.
Benefits of MCR for businesses
Merchant choice
Merchants can choose to send transactions through their preferred debit network, which can be arranged through their banking partner, or payment service provider.
Cost-effective payments
According to the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), businesses that enable LCR save nearly 20% on debit transactions², helping to reduce the cost for businesses to accept debit card payments.
Security and fraud protections
Merchants and cardholders can benefit from eftpos’ fraud protection features including EMV 3DS, real-time fraud scoring, and automated disputes and chargebacks.
Supporting Australia’s debit system
MCR was introduced to create competition in Australia for debit card payments and fundamentally drive down the cost to accept payments.
Where is MCR available?
Point of sale (POS)
Merchants can opt-in to MCR for multi-network debit (MND) cards for point of sale. There are over 50 million³ contactless enabled MND cards in Australia, featuring both eftpos and an international card network.
Ecommerce
MCR is now also available for online (card-not-present) multi-network debit card transactions, extending MCR benefits across ecommerce.
To get started with MCR or for more information, contact your banking partner, payment service provider, or AP+ relationship manager.
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