What is Interchange Plus Plus (IC++)?

Interchange Plus Plus (IC++), also known as interchange pricing and interchange++ pricing, is a transparent and itemised payment processing model that breaks down each transaction into its core components:

This model gives businesses full visibility into where their money is going for each card transaction and provides a detailed breakdown of fees.

As card payments dominate the retail landscape and margins tighten, IC++ empowers businesses to analyse, optimise, and strategically manage their processing costs. If your organisation values clarity, fairness, and actionable insights, it’s time to take a closer look at IC++.

For businesses processing a high volume of payments, understanding exactly what they are being charged for becomes essential to managing costs effectively. IC++ allows for this level of detail and includes insights into Visa and Mastercard fees, ultimately providing greater transparency.

This makes IC++ an increasingly popular choice among medium and large enterprises.

When a customer taps or inserts their card, several organisations work together to approve and settle the transaction. These include the cardholder’s bank, the card network (such as Mastercard or Visa), and the payment processor or acquiring bank that handles the transaction on your behalf.

Each of these entities charges a fee.

In IC++ pricing, these are separated into three lines: interchange, scheme, and processor markup.

This is different from flat-rate or blended pricing, where these charges are bundled into a single fee. While the bundled model is simpler, it often hides the true cost breakdown and makes it harder for businesses to analyse their payment expenses.

IC++ pricing offers several advantages, especially for businesses looking to improve cost control and data visibility.

It is commonly favoured by larger merchants or those operating in industries with tight margins and a need for robust reporting, especially when dealing with consumer cards.

Transparency

Unlike other pricing models that offer a single rate and leave merchants guessing about what’s included, IC++ breaks down each transaction's cost line by line.

You can see the actual interchange fee (which can vary depending on card type and transaction channel) and the scheme fee, all separately listed on your statement. This granular visibility builds trust between merchants and their payment providers.

When you can see the exact interchange fee and exactly where your money is going, you’re in a much stronger position to make informed decisions about how to reduce costs.

Fairness

IC++ is fundamentally a cost-plus model, which means you are charged the actual base cost of each transaction, plus a fixed markup from your processor.

This ensures a fairer pricing structure compared to flat-rate models, which often inflate costs to cover 'averages' based on the interchange rate across all transaction types.

For example, a business that processes mostly debit card transactions (which carry lower interchange fees) may be overpaying under a flat-rate model. IC++ eliminates this imbalance by aligning your fees with the true cost of the transaction.

This is particularly beneficial for merchants with predictable transaction types, such as supermarkets or online retailers with consistent customer payment behaviour, as well as those managing cross-border transactions.

Cost Optimisation

As IC++ gives you visibility into the fees charged per transaction, it becomes far easier to spot inefficiencies or high-cost trends.

If you discover that certain cards, for instance, commercial or premium credit cards, incur significantly higher fees, you may decide to encourage alternative lower-cost payment methods that can help achieve lower fees or negotiate better terms. Over time, this allows businesses to actively manage and reduce their cost per transaction.

You can also use this insight to tailor your payment strategy across regions and customer segments.

Ultimately, IC++ enables data-driven decision-making that can lead to meaningful cost savings without sacrificing payment acceptance flexibility.

Improved Reporting

Detailed reporting is an essential part of modern business operations, especially in finance and eCommerce.

IC++ statements offer transaction-level fee breakdowns that can be easily imported into accounting or business intelligence software. This allows for more accurate forecasting and enhanced visibility over margins and performance by payment channel, including the processing fee.

For enterprise merchants or those preparing for audits, the ability to report on each fee type is a valuable compliance asset.

It also helps finance and strategy teams understand how payment costs impact profitability across products or even over periods.

While IC++ offers significant benefits, it may not be suitable for every merchant. Like any pricing model, it comes with trade-offs that should be carefully considered.

Complexity

By its very nature, IC++ introduces complexity. Instead of receiving one simple transaction rate, you are given a multi-line statement detailing different fees per transaction type; this is the main difference compared to other pricing models.

For smaller businesses without a dedicated finance team or technical support, interpreting these statements may be time-consuming or confusing, especially when compared to a fixed-rate pricing model.

This complexity can lead to misunderstandings unless merchants are educated about the structure or provided with supportive tools.

Some payment providers offer dashboards or consultancy services to help demystify the data, but this depends on your processor.

Variable Costs

One of the most challenging aspects of IC++ is the variability of its cost structure.

Since interchange and scheme fees are set by external parties like the card issuer and vary based on factors like card type or transaction region, the total fee for each transaction can change significantly.

This means your processing costs may fluctuate from month to month, which makes it harder to forecast or budget consistently.

For businesses that prefer predictable costs (such as subscription services or event-based businesses), this variability could be a drawback unless they’re prepared to monitor it closely.

Requires Volume to Maximise Value

IC++ pricing becomes more valuable as your transaction volume increases. This is because the benefits of transparency and optimisation compound over time and at scale.

A company processing hundreds of thousands of transactions per month, including international transactions, may save significantly by acting on IC++ insights.

However, for smaller businesses or those with fewer transactions, the additional effort required to manage IC++ pricing might not deliver a strong return.

In such cases, flat-rate or blended pricing may be more convenient even if it’s slightly more expensive, due to ease of use.

When comparing card processing models, it is important to consider not just the cost, but also the control and long-term suitability of each approach.

IC++ stands out by offering complete transparency in online payments. Every fee is itemised, enabling deeper cost analysis and greater flexibility.

It’s not the easiest to manage, but for businesses that prioritise insight, IC++ provides the most accurate reflection of your actual payment processing costs.

Whether or not IC++ is the right pricing model depends on your infrastructure and appetite for data-led decision-making.

For businesses that handle a high volume of transactions, especially across multiple countries or with varied payment methods through various payment service providers, the cost visibility IC++ offers can lead to savings and smarter operations.

You may also benefit from IC++ if your business has a strong finance or operations team capable of interpreting complex statements and identifying areas for improvement, allowing for a more strategic approach in payment management.

The ability to negotiate, analyse trends, and refine your payment strategy is what sets high-performing businesses apart, and knowing what is IC can enhance these capabilities.

However, if you’re a smaller business with limited capacity to review payment data, or if predictability is more important than optimisation, then a flat or blended pricing model may be more suitable until you scale further.

At DECTA, we specialise in modern, scalable payment solutions designed for businesses that demand transparency and control.

Our IC++ pricing model is built for businesses looking to grow sustainably by understanding and managing every element of their processing costs. We provide detailed transaction-level reporting, so you always know what you’re paying for, whether it’s interchange, scheme fees or our competitive markup.

DECTA’s infrastructure is robust and fast to integrate. We offer multi-currency support and operate across more than 32 countries, helping our clients expand their reach while maintaining cost efficiency.

Our dedicated account managers and technical teams work closely with you to optimise your processing transactions and reduce hidden costs by making data-backed decisions that boost your bottom line.

Find out more about how our transparent pricing and enterprise-grade online payments services can help your business thrive.