cardholder fee for major credit cards, Visa and MasterCard, by 50 percent.

After February 1, the annual fee for the cards, chargeable at the time they are renewed, will rise from $20 to $30.

Bank officials said that the increase was the first in more than five years, but came after the bank had to pay annual increases in outlay to accommodate the service.

Cross-town competitor, Bank of Butterfield charges $35 annually to their Visa and MasterCard holders.

Manager of electronic banking for the Bank of Bermuda, David Lema, said, "The gold cards are not affected by this increase, nor are our BermudaCards. But our costs for the Visa and MasterCard have increased every year and we have absorbed those increases every year, every April 1.

Bank of Bermuda card fees set to increase "It's not just Visa and MasterCard charges. We also pay our card processor and insurance to protect ourself and our card holders from things like fraud and theft.

"We now have to make an adjustment in order to offset some of the increasing costs on our end, charges levied on us for the back office functions.

"We've been able, over many years, to absorb those costs, but we are at the point now where a review is necessary.

"To minimise the impact on our card holders, we've delayed the increases until our card holders new cards come into effect. So, if your cards are replaced every November, it won't be until November 1998 that the increase will be affected.'' ON THE RISE -- Fees for Bank of Bermuda credit cards may be going up, but they are still lower than those of rival, Bank of Butterfield.