Brussels, 06/04/2009 (Agence Europe) - On 6 April, the European Commission confirmed that it had sent a statement of objections to Visa as part of the formal proceedings launched in March 2008. According to the Commission the multilateral interchange fees (MIFs) set directly by Visa restrict competition and infringes European antitrust rules (Article 81 EC Treaty and Article 53 EEA Treaty). These MIFs currently apply to all cross-border transactions in the EEA, as well as to domestic transactions in nine EU Member States (Belgium, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxemburg, Malta, The Netherlands and Sweden. MIFs are not illegal as such. However, a MIF in an open payment card scheme such as Visa's is only compatible with European antitrust rules if it contributes to technical and economic progress and benefits consumers. A.B./trans/rh