Obama meets with credit card executives

WASHINGTON, April 23 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama met with executives from 14 credit card companies Thursday to discuss reforms aimed at protecting consumers.

After the meeting, the president said he has several concerns, including unfair rate increases and abusive fees, the White House said in a statement. He said statements and forms companies send to customers should be written in plain English and contracts should be understandable so consumers can shop for the card offering the best deal.

Obama called the meeting "constructive."

"We had a discussion with some of the top issuers here, and what I communicated to them is that I think credit cards are an important convenience for a lot of people," he said. "They are a source of unsecured debt for a lot of individuals and small businesses who are creating jobs; a lot of startups may use credit cards for that purpose. We think that's important, and so we want to preserve the credit card market."

The House Financial Committee approved a bill this week aimed at ending "excessive" fees and require more disclosure to consumers, CNN reported.

Republican critics of the House bill say it is not needed because the Federal Reserve Bank has proposed regulations that take effect next year and would accomplish the same goals.