Payments

Merchants have been challenging surcharge bans in numerous states on free-speech grounds. They have the wind at their backs following another court victory on Wednesday.

Both in dollar and transaction volume, credit card use is growing at a faster pace than debit use. Much of the growth is coming from affluent consumers who value rewards like 2% cash back on purchases.

American Express will become the exclusive issuer of Hilton Honors cobranded credit cards in January, taking over the entire portfolio it previously shared with Citigroup.

In a surprise move, the Supreme Court will decide whether Amex may bar merchants from steering customers to less expensive card networks. The card issuer will have to prove the consumer gain from its practices outweighs the merchant pain.