US President Donald Trump has called for a one year cap on credit card interest rate charges at 10% – around half of the average current US rate – starting from January 20.

Vanderbilt University analysis from September last year found there were “astronomical profit margins in the [US] credit card market”. It concluded a 10% cap could save Americans as much as US$100 billion (A$149 billion) a year. But it also found likely unintended consequences with a cap that low, including reduced lending for people with lower credit scores.

It’s unclear how the White House plans to make the president’s announcement happen. Bank stocks fell on the news, despite Wall St analysts reportedly expressing scepticism, saying:

it would take an Act of Congress for such rate caps to be in place, given the overwhelming legal challenges an executive order would likely face.

What about here in Australia? Could such a cap be worth considering? And are there any current rules in place capping how high our rates go?

As of the end of last year, Australians had

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