With the decision announced this Tuesday, the withdrawal is temporarily paused while talks with financial institutions continue
Santo Domingo. The president of the National Association of Gasoline Retailers (Anadegas), Juan Elías Pérez, reported this Tuesday that the association will maintain card payments at gas stations for the time being, after noting progress in negotiations between the Government and the banking sector to find a solution to the conflict over the high commissions paid by retailers.
The decision was announced after a meeting of representatives from Anadegas with the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and SMEs (MICM) and other authorities linked to the process.
Pérez highlighted the progress made in the talks with the national banking sector and praised the efforts made by the authorities to find a solution to the conflict.
“Today we have come here as a commission from the Association of Fuel Retailers of Anadegas to verify the great progress of the work that the Minister of Industry and Commerce has been doing, also together with the Minister of Consumer Protection, to establish a waiting period and verify that the negotiations with the national banks are really very advanced,” Pérez stated.
The president of Anadegas also thanked the President of the Republic for his efforts in finding a solution to the retailers' complaint about the cost of commissions applied to card transactions.
“We appreciate the President of the Republic’s commitment to finding a solution to this impasse we have due to the high commission on credit cards,” he said.
Given the reported progress, the union decided to keep electronic payments enabled at the stations.
“We will continue to accept the cards, trusting that the Government will resolve this credit card impasse,” Pérez said.
Verifone removal is on hold
In that context, the meeting took place at a time when Anadegas had proposed removing Verifone devices from stations in response to the impact of bank fees on retailers
With the decision announced this Tuesday, the withdrawal is temporarily paused while talks with financial institutions continue.
Government highlights willingness to engage in dialogue
During the meeting, the Government expressed its gratitude to the Board of Directors of Anadegas for their willingness to maintain dialogue and await the results of the negotiations.
“We thank the Board of Directors of Anadegas for their patience in light of a crisis that is not of Dominican origin, it is a global crisis,” said the Anadegas representative.
He also assured that the authorities will continue working to ensure conditions that allow for the sustainability of the different sectors that participate in the fuel market.
“The Dominican Government will continue working to ensure that all sectors interacting in this market have a viable healthcare system that allows them to continue working and providing services to Dominicans.”.
The conflict over commissions
The disagreement between retailers and the financial sector centers on the fees that stations must pay for transactions made using credit and debit cards.
Anadegas has argued that these costs represent a burden for businesses and had warned about the possibility of suspending the use of Verifones.
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