Mastercard has the authority to define default intra-location (domestic) interchange fee programs. Consistent with its approach to setting interchange fees elsewhere in the world, the goal of Mastercard in setting default interchange fees is to ensure both the wide-spread issuance of Mastercard cards by licensees and the wide-spread acceptance of Mastercard cards by merchants.

Interchange fees are set by taking into account local market conditions including, inter alia, competitive pressures from other payment methods, long-term trends in costs, regulatory context, the need for investment in new technology, and the need to provide incentives to increase the efficiency of the system. Mastercard is leading the industry in bringing transparency to the interchange system by posting Mastercard-set intra-location POS (point of sale) interchange fees for a number of European locations (including all EEA locations).