It makes one sick to hear the subversive Kremlin propaganda spread by so-called "pro-Russian" websites and internet radio stations, claiming that it will be an economic salvation for us and that we will start doing wonderfully economically if we leave the EU.
It is also very depressing for me that even the so-called mainstream media do not explain to people what great economic benefits the EU brings us. Under such circumstances, where disinformation and propaganda are stronger than facts, a possible referendum on remaining in the EU could turn out to be very controversial.
The EU has reduced card payment fees tenfold.
While in the US and around the world the average fee for card payments is 2%, the EU has issued a directive that has reduced this fee to 0.2%.Leaving the EU would mean that our payment card fees would increase to an average of 2%. It is unrealistic for such a small, insignificant, and corrupt state as Slovakia to be able to negotiate a lower fee with such large American corporations. Even if the Slovak government were to pass a law to reduce fees, American companies like VISA, MasterCard, and Maestro could stonewall, blackmail Slovakia, and withdraw completely from the Slovak market, which would seriously damage us economically. The EU cannot be blackmailed in this way because the EU is too large, and withdrawing from the market would economically harm these companies.
Well, go ahead: let's curse the bad European Union, which has reduced the usurious fees of large financial corporations and thus stimulated the economy in the EU.
SEPA transfers
Few people know what SEPA transfers actually are and what huge economic benefits they bring us. A SEPA transfer is either free or costs about 20 cents, and the fee for it is the same throughout the EU. The transaction is definitively completed within two working days.However, almost no one knows what would happen if we left the EU and got rid of SEPA transfers. SEPA transfers would be replaced by transfers from the payment system of the monopolistic corporation SWIFT. The problem with SWIFT is mainly the very high fees, which range from approximately 10 to 50 EUR. For many entrepreneurs, such fees could be devastating. Imagine that we were not part of the EU and a customer from Austria orders goods worth 10 EUR from an e-shop, but pays another 10 EUR for the SEPA transfer.
What is SWIFT?
SWIFT is a private company based in Belgium. According to the official definition, SWIFT is a communication network that ensures transactions between banks worldwide. In reality, SWIFT is more accurately described as a global payment system. SWIFT is a monopoly and has no competition in the world. This is perhaps also the reason why the services of this company are overpriced and payments can take 3 to 5 working days. The most expensive SWIFT payment fees are for payments to the USA. A payment from the EU to the USA will cost you at least 10 EUR from your domestic Slovak bank + 25 US dollars in fees from so-called correspondent banks on the US side. A payment from the USA to the EU is more or less fixed and costs 60 US dollars.And one more interesting fact: Donald Trump wanted to destroy Iran economically by disconnecting it from SWIFT, but he failed because SWIFT is a Belgian European company. Trump also considered imposing a huge fine on SWIFT, but this step proved unrealistic, as SWIFT is a monopoly and SWIFT has the upper hand in this conflict and can blackmail the United States. SWIFT could completely ruin the United States economically if it disconnected them from international transactions.
BIC code vs. SWIFT code
SWIFT is such an influential monopoly that the so-called SWIFT code, the SWIFT designation for individual banks, has also become an international standard adopted by the ISO, the International Organization for Standardization.The SWIFT code is also filled in for transactions between SEPA countries, which may lead people to mistakenly believe that it has something to do with the SWIFT company. In the case of a SEPA transfer, the more accurate name for the SWIFT code is the BIC code, Bank Identifier Code.
TTIP vs. SWIFT
The EU-US common market agreement is shrouded in many conspiracies; many people see it as a conspiracy of dark forces, Freemasons, or Jews. The fact is, however, that it would be economically advantageous for both sides, if only because of the decrease in transaction fees and the shortening of the length of transactions between the EU and the US. Both sides would profit from it.The American alternative to SEPA transfers is ACH transfers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automated_Clearing_House
Source links:
Card payment fees https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interchange_feeSEPA https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_Euro_Payments_Area
TTIP https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transatlantic_Trade_and_Investment_Partnership
SWIFThttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society_for_Worldwide_Interbank_Financial_Telecommunication
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BIC_code
The difference between an ACH transfer and a Wire Transfer in the USA. A Wire Transfer is a transaction via the SWIFT payment system https://www.thebalance.com/ach-vs-wire-transfer-3886077
https://www.nacha.org/news/what-ach-quick-facts-about-automated-clearing-house-ach-network