Bank stocks and credit card issuers have hit new lows following a call from U.S. President Donald Trump to impose a temporary cap on credit card interest rates.
Last Friday, Trump posted on his “Truth Social” platform that interest rates on credit cards should be capped at 10% for one year, starting January 20, 2026. Trump did not specify how this cap would be legislated or whether such a measure could be legally enforced.
Shares of Barclays, the British bank with a large credit card business in the U.S., fell by 3.5%. Shares of U.S. companies such as American Express, Visa, and Mastercard also recorded declines in early morning trading.
U.S. banking associations indicate that imposing price restrictions will make it harder for people to obtain credit and will be “devastating” for millions of families and small businesses.
The standard interest rate for credit cards in the United States is currently around 20%.
In his social media statement, Trump called for it to be limited to 10%, reviving an idea he presented during his 2024 presidential campaign.
“On January 20, 2026, as President of the United States, I am calling for a one-year cap on Credit Card Interest Rates of 10%,” he wrote. He added: “Please be informed that we will no longer let the American Public be ‘ripped off’ by Credit Card Companies.”
On Sunday, while hosting reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said that credit card companies would be “in violation of the law” if they did not respond to his demands.
American Express shares recorded a 4% drop, while Visa and Mastercard fell by more than 2%. Other major U.S. lenders, including JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, saw declines of more than 1% at the start of trading.
Matt Britzman, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said that forcing lenders to cut their loan rates “would turn the world of bank credit upside down.” He added that “most banks would respond by cutting customer credit limits, closing riskier accounts, and reducing incentive programs, given they simply would not be able to cover losses at that price.”
About half of all households in the United States carried credit card debt in 2022, according to the latest Survey of Consumer Finances by the Federal Reserve.
The survey found that indebted households had an average outstanding balance of more than $6,000 (£4,454)—which, with interest rates at around 20%, equates to about $100 a month in interest.
The idea of imposing caps on card interest rates has gained attention from an unexpected group of lawmakers, bringing them together with Trump supporters in the House of Representatives.
However, the path to putting the proposal into practice is unknown.
Similar plans have tended to stall in Congress. Furthermore, the administration has sought to reduce the role of the bodies that regulated such matters in past years.
Josh Klein, chief policy officer at the Broadwood Association, said the proposal “has not been fully utilized.”
Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren said on her “X” platform: “Trying to persuade credit card companies to comply with their requirements is just a joke.” She said that “last year, I said if Trump were serious, I would work to discuss a price cap law. Since then, he has only tried to shut down the Consumer Protection Center.”
Analysts said any executive action by the White House would have to face a legal challenge from the industry, which has been successful in the past at stopping regulation in the courts.
A joint statement from five U.S. banking organizations added that they share the President’s goal of “helping Americans get more affordable credit.”
But they added that the proposal would reduce the availability of credit and be devastating for millions of American families and small businesses that rely on and value it—the very consumers the proposal aims to help. The statement added: “If this cap is passed, it will only serve to drive consumers to less regulated and more expensive alternatives.”
In early 2025, Senator Bernie Sanders and Republican Senator Josh Hawley introduced a bipartisan bill aimed at imposing a 10% cap on credit card interest rates for five years, but it has not yet been passed into law. In April 2025, the Trump administration removed a regulation that imposed a cap on credit card late fees at $8. That rule had been launched as part of a crackdown on “junk fees.”
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