The Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses said in a release that eligible merchants could receive up to $600 as part of a “multimillion-dollar” settlement with Visa and Mastercard over rules preventing businesses from surcharging or refusing higher-cost credit cards. Under the settlement, the credit-card issuers will also allow small businesses to pass on fees to customers starting as early as October. (The Logic)

Talking point: The drop in cash usage since the start of the pandemic has led to higher credit-card processing costs for small businesses, according to the CFIB. “The settlement is another small step toward ensuring fairness for many small businesses that have been dealing with expensive credit card processing fees,” the group said in a statement. The federal government ran a consultation late last year aimed at reducing credit-card transaction fees, but it hasn’t issued any public statement about the results. The settlement applies to businesses that have accepted Visa or Mastercard cards at any point since March 23, 2001.