Comptroller Lander, Amalgamated Bank, NYC Pension Trustees, and Elected Leaders Urge Full Implementation of Merchant Category Code for Gun and Ammunition Retailers

New York, NY – Today, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, Amalgamated Bank, New York State Attorney General Letitia James, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams, trustees of the New York City Retirement Systems, elected leaders and advocates held a press conference applauding the decision by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to approve the application by Amalgamated Bank to create a new merchant category code (MCC) for standalone gun and ammunition stores.

The three pension funds own 667,200 thousand shares in American Express valued at approximately $92.49 million; 1.1 million shares in Mastercard valued at approximately $347.59 million; and 1.85 million shares in Visa valued at approximately $363.86 million as of June 30, 2022.
 
“We all need to do our part to prevent gun violence, and the creation of a merchant category code for gun stores will enable financial institutions to do theirs. Now, gun and ammunition stores will be identified, just as bike shops or clothing stores already are. As shareholders, we will continue to engage with the major credit card companies to ensure these codes are implemented and utilized to curb illegal activity,” said New York City Comptroller Brad Lander.
 
An MCC is a four-digit number that financial institutions use to identify businesses by the types of goods or services sold. Currently, many businesses are issued a distinct MCC, from clothing stores and transportation providers to very specific types of businesses such as shoeshine shops, and wig and toupee stores. However, there has been no MCC for standalone gun and ammunitions stores. With the creation of this code, financial institutions now have a new tool to detect and report suspicious activity at gun and ammunition retailers associated with criminal activity.
 
Comptroller Lander, Mayor Eric Adams, Attorney General Letitia James, and other state and city officials called for the creation of a code last month as the ISO meeting approached. That call followed the filing of a shareholder proposal by Comptroller Lander and the trustees of the New York City Employees’ Retirement System, Teachers’ Retirement System and Board of Education Retirement Systems at American Express and Mastercard, two of the world’s largest credit card issuers requesting that the boards of both companies assess and publicly report to all investors on their oversight of management’s decision-making regarding any application to the ISO to establish an MCC for standalone gun and ammunition stores. The three systems echoed that call in a letter to American Express, Mastercard and Visa jointly with the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS).

Following the decision by the ISO to establish a new code, the three systems plan to continue engagement with American Express, Mastercard and Visa to ensure swift and full implementation.

“We all have to do our part to stop gun violence,” said Priscilla Sims Brown, President and CEO of Amalgamated Bank. “And it sometimes starts with illegal purchases of guns and ammunition. The new code will allow us to fully comply with our duty to report suspicious activity and illegal gun sales to authorities without blocking or impeding legal gun sales. This action answers the call of millions of Americans who want safety from gun violence and we are proud to have led the broad coalition of advocates, shareholders, and elected officials that achieved this historic outcome.”

“Today’s decision requiring credit cards to categorize gun sales is a big victory that will help us better address gun violence and avoid tragedies. Labeling gun and ammunition sales is a responsible, common sense way to help protect Americans and I thank Amalgamated Bank for their bold leadership on this critical issue. I urge credit card companies to take the next step and flag suspicious transactions on gun and ammunition sales, like they do for fraud and money laundering. By working together and using the tools at our disposal, including this new categorization, we will help protect our communities and save lives,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James.

“I want to thank the International Standards Organization for answering our call and newly approving a merchant category code for guns and ammunition stores, and thank Amalgamated Bank, Comptroller Brad Lander, and everyone who was instrumental in pushing for its creation,” said New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams. “Every illegal gun was legal at some point, and the usage of these codes can be extremely important in monitoring and flagging suspicious gun purchases as well as future gun trafficking. This simple step can help detect suspicious activity and prevent violence. Now that the standard has been approved, the three major credit card companies – in which New Yorkers’ pensions are invested – must adopt this code, just as they have for retailers from utilities to transportation to clothing. As an elected leader and a trustee of the New York City Employees’ Retirement System, there is a fiscal and moral responsibility to protect New Yorkers’ safety and finances by urging these companies to exercise that same responsibility and utilize this code. There’s no good reason for them not to adopt this common sense standard to strengthen accountability and save lives.”

“Today marks a historic step forward in the fight to end gun violence in our lifetime. I wholeheartedly applaud the creation of a new MCC for gun and ammunition retailers and am confident that with help from credit card companies, we have a new way to protect our communities through the tracking of suspicious transactions. I thank Amalgamated Bank for their steadfast leadership in presenting this application for a new MCC to the Committee, and thank the over 50 New York State legislators who joined me in calling for support of its creation.  This will be a valuable tool against the scourge of gun violence and I look forward to seeing the universal implementation of this Merchant Categories Code,” said New York State Senator Zellnor Myrie.

“Throughout the past year, I have worked with the state legislature to end gun violence and this week, we moved one step closer to that goal. In response to multiple letters from my colleagues and me, financial institutions have agreed to start tracking gun-related purchases. For these companies, tracking credit card purchases is standard practice but in the past, an exception was made for guns: gun-related purchases were recorded as “miscellaneous” transactions and therefore it was never possible to tell what guns were bought by whom. Now, credit card companies will explicitly record gun-related purchases, and this data will help law enforcement to analyze suspicious spending patterns and prevent mass shootings before they can take place. This simple change made by credit card companies will help save lives,” said Chantel Jackson, New York State Assembly Member.

“Gun violence is a crisis that has been tearing apart too many families for far too long,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. “The approval of an MCC for gun and ammunition stores is a great step forward in addressing this scourge. We must continue to be creative and aggressive in combating gun violence so we can keep our families safe.”

“The epidemic of gun violence in America continues to worsen and requires that we leave no stone unturned in seeking to save lives. We therefore commend Amalgamated Bank for its courageous leadership in demonstrating that the financial industry, too, has a part to play,” said Adam Skaggs, chief counsel and policy director, Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. “Creating a dedicated merchant category code for gun sales is only the first step, though, and we look forward to working with Visa, Mastercard, and American Express to ensure swift efforts to ensure uniform and comprehensive use of this new code.”
 
“Thanks to the leadership of Amalgamated Bank, credit card companies can now implement coding systems that have the ability to reduce gun violence,” said Rebecca Fischer, Executive Director of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence. “Now that credit card companies have the power to flag suspicious gun purchases, we urge Visa, Mastercard, and American Express to quickly follow suit and implement this straightforward, life-saving process.”
 
“We are grateful that the financial sector has stopped stalling and finally understands the problem, which is that credit card purchases have consistently been involved in some of our nation’s worst mass shootings. Credit card companies have rules to stop fraud and human trafficking. This common-sense decision means the same rules will apply to guns, making it easier to stop illegal firearms-related activity,” said Igor Volsky, Founder and Executive Director of Guns Down America. “We will now work to make sure the credit card companies implement these new changes without delay.”
 
“We’re thankful to Amalgamated Bank for their leadership on establishing a merchant category code for firearms dealers. This small change to business practices will help identify illegal or suspicious activity to stop shootings before they happen and save lives. We call on financial institutions to work with us to institute these new changes,” said Kris Brown, President of Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
 
“Combatting gun violence in our nation requires a multi-faceted approach — including providing tools to banks and credit card companies to recognize suspicious transactions” said Nick Suplina, Senior Vice President for Law & Policy at Everytown for Gun Safety, the nation’s largest gun violence prevention organization. “These new codes and their swift adoption by payment processors are a welcome development in the effort to get financial institutions to do their part in preventing tragedy before it happens.”

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