Latest news with #consumer protection
Arab News
2 days ago
- Business
- Arab News
New credit card rules redefine consumer protection in Saudi Arabia
To strengthen consumer protection and enhance market transparency, the Saudi Central Bank, known as SAMA, last month announced updated regulations on the issuance, operation, and fees of credit cards. SAMA's updated credit card regulations will replace the previous rules established in 2015 governing the issuance, operation, and charges of credit cards. The new regulations will take effect within 30 to 90 days. For example, updates to fees and charges will be implemented within 30 days, while standardized disclosure sections — detailing all applicable fees, costs, and benefits — will be incorporated into credit card agreements within 90 days. The updated rules establish guidelines for credit card issuers to enhance disclosure, improve transparency, and reduce the cost of credit cards for consumers. The rules also include detailed provisions governing the operational aspects of credit cards to increase consumers' financial awareness and foster a regulatory environment that promotes innovation in the financial sector. In addition, SAMA has collaborated with international card schemes to review and revise the fees and charges for credit card transactions, as part of its broader strategy to enhance digital payments for consumers and visitors to the Kingdom, in line with the objectives of Vision 2030. As part of the key updates to fees and charges, cash withdrawals below SR2,500 will incur a fee capped at 3 percent of the transaction amount, while withdrawals of SR2,500 or more will be subject to a maximum fee of SR75. Additionally, international purchases will now incur a fee of 2 percent of the transaction value. Customers are also allowed to deposit funds exceeding their credit limit and may withdraw these excess amounts at any time without incurring additional charges. With respect to repayments, customers may pay off their full outstanding balance without being subject to late payment fees, provided payment is made within a mandatory grace period of at least 25 days. In addition to enhancing transparency and disclosure, the new regulatory provisions are expected to encourage consumers to hold more credit cards, driven by improved fee structures and reduced charges. SAMA's efforts, in collaboration with international card schemes, to revise transaction fees are expected to encourage broader credit card acceptance among merchants in Saudi Arabia. This will offer consumers greater payment flexibility alongside MADA cards, particularly as credit card usage at POS terminals and for local online purchases remains free of charge. This will not only provide credit card holders with additional payment options but also help merchants boost their sales and revenues. Importantly, the updated credit card regulations are expected to bolster the tourism sector in the Kingdom by facilitating credit card payments for foreign tourists, thereby enhancing overall tourism-generated income. It will also support SAMA's strategy to enhance digital payments for consumers and visitors to the Kingdom. Finally, the regulatory updates will contribute to the Kingdom's transition toward a cashless society and digital economy, in line with the strategic goals of Vision 2030. They also guide credit card issuers and banks, and reflect how this reform aligns with Saudi Arabia's broader strategy to create a more robust, cashless, and consumer-centric financial environment. • Talat Zaki Hafiz is an economist and financial analyst. X: @TalatHafiz
Malay Mail
5 days ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
E-commerce law overhaul coming in 2026, Malaysia to regulate platform fees, foreign sellers
PUTRAJAYA, July 17 — A bill to strengthen the legal framework for e-commerce is expected to be tabled in Parliament during its first session next year, said Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali. He said the ongoing review of e-commerce legislation commenced in April 2024 and is expected to conclude by August, involving engagement with stakeholders across the industry, among others. 'The review is necessary as the current legal framework lacks clear regulatory powers over electronic transactions, with the existing Electronic Commerce Act serving mainly as an enabling act. 'Enforcement currently depends on the Consumer Protection Act and related regulations, which were meant to be temporary. We need a comprehensive and fair framework accepted by all stakeholders to support e-commerce growth,' he told reporters after an engagement session today. Armizan said Malaysia's e-commerce sector recorded steady growth, with revenue rising from RM1.13 trillion in 2022 to RM1.22 trillion last year. He emphasised that new regulations must not hinder the sector's development, noting that once a mechanism is in place for local platforms, a similar approach will be considered for foreign-based operators. He added that, at present, the ministry has no authority to regulate or monitor foreign platforms without a physical presence in Malaysia, raising concerns over the influx of foreign products and tax inequality. Armizan also said that discussions are underway with countries such as China and Turkiye on a government-to-government (G2G) mechanism, particularly on regulating cross-border e-commerce and direct selling. Meanwhile, Armizan said consumer protection is a key focus in the ongoing review of the e-commerce legal framework, particularly on the use of automated decision-making (ADM) systems or algorithms that may contain manipulative elements. He said the ministry is also looking into growing concerns over recent increases in platform fees imposed by several e-commerce operators, noting that such fee hikes are business decisions made by the platforms themselves. 'In my view, the timing of their fee adjustments is not appropriate, especially since some had already revised their commission fees as recently as August last year,' he said. He added that while blocking such decisions entirely may not be realistic, the ministry is exploring a mechanism requiring platforms to consult with them or relevant agencies before making fee changes that affect users or sellers. To date, the review process has involved 23 engagement sessions, six roundtable discussions, four benchmarking visits abroad and over 300 respondents, with sessions in Sabah and Sarawak to follow. — Bernama
The Independent
5 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Easyjet boss slams ‘unworkable and mad' EU proposals to change cabin baggage rules
European Union proposals to allow all airline passengers to take two pieces of cabin baggage are 'unworkable and mad', according to the chief executive of easyJet. The European Parliament have voted in favour of the plan, saying increasing the amount of cabin baggage 'would enhance transparency and consumer protection for all air travellers'. But Kenton Jarvis, CEO of Britain's biggest budget airline, told The Independent: 'It's a bizarre initiative from someone who clearly doesn't fly very much – because there isn't room for two bags in the aircraft. 'It's unworkable and mad.' After easyJet started charging for cabin baggage in 2008, for a few years the airline allowed a small backpack and a trolley bag without charge. Mr Jarvis said of that era: 'The biggest single cause of disruption for the customer when two bags were offered by easyJet was taking bags off people at the gate, which is never pleasant. 'We saw a 95 per cent drop from that when we introduced charging for large cabin bags.' On a typical flight from Gatwick to Malaga, the charge for a large piece of hand luggage is £27. Since the European proposals emerged, the airlines' trade association Airlines for Europe has established a minimum size for the single free piece of cabin baggage, leading Ryanair to increase its allowance by 20 per cent. But Mr Jarvis said: 'We have one of the largest free cabin bag allowances at easyJet. It's 45 by 36 by 20 [cm], and because of that, up to 40 per cent of our customers travel with that free allowance. They do not choose to allocate their seating, and therefore are happy to fly on the original advertised fare.' 'If you force a second bag into the cabin, you remove choice. You'll essentially put the price up. And it's completely unworkable because there isn't enough room.' Ryanair and Wizz Air have smaller limits for their free cabin bag, with a maximum volume of 24 litres; easyJet's is one-third larger, at 32 litres.
South China Morning Post
09-07-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong tech and telecoms giants unite to combat online fraud
Hong Kong's major social media, messaging platform providers and telecoms firms have pledged to strengthen checks on advertisers' identities and remove fraudulent advertisements embedded with phishing links. Seven social media or messaging platforms and six telecommunications companies have joined the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's (HKMA) Anti-scam Consumer Protection Charter 3.0. The initiative commits them to proactively detecting fraud on their platforms and networks, as well as cooperating with the HKMA and other financial regulators. 'To combat these evolving threats, it is crucial to collaborate with technology and telecommunications partners to tackle the problem at the platform level,' Eddie Yue Wai-man, chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, said at the charter's launch ceremony on Wednesday. The seven participants from the technology sector were Douyin, Google, Meta, Microsoft, WeChat, Weibo and RedNote, while the six from the telecommunications industry were China Mobile Hong Kong, China Unicom (Hong Kong) Operations, HGC Global Communications, HKT, Hutchison Telecommunications and SmarTone Mobile Communications. The participants pledged to adhere to six principles to combat fraud on their platforms.
Auto Blog
18-05-2025
- Automotive
- Auto Blog
Feds Drop $60 Million Penalty Against This Automaker
Consumers get the short end of the stick with the recent fed reversal The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has canceled a 2023 settlement with the financing arm of Toyota that had ordered the automaker's division to pay a $12 million penalty to the federal government and $48 million to car buyers allegedly targeted by illegal lending practices since 2016. The allegations revolve around reports of Toyota illegally steering thousands of customers into expensive and unnecessary product bundles that many consumers were misled into believing were mandatory. According to the CFPB, these product bundles, which added $700 to $2,500 to each loan, included Credit Life and Accidental Health (CLAH) coverage paying a loan's remaining balance if the borrower passes away or becomes disabled, and Guaranteed Asset Protection (GAP), which waives some of the customer's loan balance if their vehicle is totaled, but they still owe on the loan even with car insurance. During their investigation, the CFPB determined that Toyota Motor Credit made it unreasonably difficult for consumers to cancel the unwanted add-ons after customer complaints claiming the automaker forced the product bundles without their consent. Additionally, the CFPB found that Toyota's financing arm failed 'to ensure consumers received refunds of unearned GAP and CLAH premiums when they paid off their loans early or ended lease agreements early' and didn't 'provide accurate refunds to consumers who canceled their vehicle service agreements as a result of flawed system logic.' Lastly, the CFPB determined that Toyota's finance division hurt victims' credit by falsely reporting customer accounts as delinquent, even though consumers had already returned their vehicles, and failing to correct the information submitted to credit agencies promptly. 'Toyota's lending arm illegally withheld refunds, made borrowers run through obstacle courses to cancel unwanted services, and tarnished their credit reports,' former CFPB director Rohit Chopra said, according to Road & Track. A rocky relationship with the current administration The decision to drop the penalty may have something to do with the current administration's recent actions. When asked whether he intended to 'totally eliminate' the CFPB on February 10, President Trump said 'that was a very important thing to get rid of,' according to Reuters. The current acting director of the CFPB, Russ Vought, who was appointed to the bureau by President Trump on February 7, sent an email to CFPB staff on February 8 directing employees not to issue any proposed or formal rules, stop pending investigations, not open new investigations, halt stakeholder engagements, and refrain from issuing public communications, according to CBS. Vought's email occurred after Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) thoroughly reviewed the CFPB. In late February, lawyers for President Trump's administration denied that the White House intends to dismantle the CFPB. However, on April 15, the Trump administration sent 1,500 of the CFPB's 1700 total staff members layoff notices before a federal judge temporarily blocked the move on April 18, which remains in effect. The Wall Street Journal reports that Vought has served as Elon Musk's lower-profile DOGE partner. Toyota Motor Corporation Experience Center — Source: Getty Vincent Bray, Senior Manager of Corporate Communications at Toyota Financial Services, told Autoblog in response to the cancelled settlement: 'Toyota Motor Credit Corporation (TMCC) appreciates the CFPB's action, and we look forward to maintaining a good working relationship with the bureau. We remain committed to doing the right things for our customers and following applicable federal and state laws in our sales, customer service, and administrative practices. We will continue to enhance our practices to deliver the best possible customer experiences.' Final thoughts The CFPB's decision to reverse its 2023 settlement order against Toyota's financing arm reflects how President Trump's policies are affecting the automotive industry and its consumers beyond the ripple effects of tariffs. Additionally, the CFPB's cancellation of the settlement, which occurred on Monday, comes at a time when much of the bureau's operations are in flux, raising more questions than answers regarding its reversal. The CFPB did not provide a reason for the settlement's cancellation.
