Mastercard Removes MDEF Cap: What US Acquirers and ISOs Need to Know About Network (Scheme) Fees
US acquirers and ISOs: Mastercard MDEF cap removed - are you staying on top of network fees?
Per Fiserv’s public Card Brand Update, Mastercard removed the $0.40 maximum on the Digital Enablement Fee (rate stays 0.02%, $0.02 minimum) effective Oct 1, 2025 (for Fiserv merchants). I’ll drop the source in the first comment.
Why this matters
• Large tokenized tickets now incur more than $0.40 in MDEF.
• Small per-txn changes compound fast across your book.
• Network fees evolve continually - getting ahead of them protects margin.
Quick example
• $5,000 tokenized sale at 0.02% = $1.00 MDEF vs the old $0.40 cap.
What to do
• Flag high-ticket tokenized merchants and quantify the run-rate.
• Surface MDEF as a distinct line item.
• Update pricing playbooks and client education now.
If you want a fast review of exposure and practical mitigations, DM me.