Amazon halts plan to stop accepting Visa credit cards in the UK

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LONDON — Amazon has scrapped plans to stop accepting Visa credit cards in the U.K.

The e-commerce giant was expected to prevent Brits from using a Visa-issued credit card on its platform from Jan. 19. But in a statement Monday, the firm said the change «will no longer take place.»

«We are working closely with Visa on a potential solution that will enable customers to continue using their Visa credit cards on Amazon.co.uk,» an Amazon spokesperson told CNBC by email.

Amazon initially made the shock announcement in November, citing «high fees Visa charges for processing credit card transactions.» Visa at the time said it was «very disappointed» in the move and would work toward a resolution with Amazon.

The two companies have locked horns in the past, with Amazon announcing plans to introduce a 0.5% surcharge on Visa credit cards in Australia and Singapore last year.

It's not yet clear why Amazon made the U-turn on its plan to ditch Visa credit cards in the U.K., nor whether the decision is final or temporary.

«Amazon customers can continue to use Visa cards on Amazon.co.uk after January 19 while we work closely together to reach an agreement,» a Visa spokesperson told CNBC by email.

Following Brexit, Visa and rival payment processor Mastercard have hiked interchange fees, the cut they take on digital transactions between the U.K. and European Union. Card networks were allowed to raise their charges after an EU cap on interchange fees ceased to apply in Britain.

However, Amazon and Visa say the dispute is not related to the U.K.'s withdrawal from the EU. Instead, the move was interpreted by experts as a way for Amazon to get some bargaining power over Visa to lower its fees.

David Ritter, a financial