Last month, PaymentsSource said micropayments (defined as transactions less than $10) are “poised for a breakthrough year.”

Citing the rise of consumer and merchant comfort with micropayments and the increasing popularity of the smart phone, the payments industry trade magazine suggests 2010 may be a banner year for these mini transactions.

What smaller card issuers may be wondering is how the rise of micropayments will impact their interchange revenue.

While major changes in interchange policies still loom on the horizon, as of today, signs point only to positive returns from an increase in micropayments. That’s because most micropayment growth comes from new transactions or as a replacement of cash.

As PaymentSource observes, there has been no movement toward developing a micropayment interchange scale by any of the major network operators.

While Visa declined to participate in the article, a Mastercard representative told PaymentsSource that merchants’ increasing acceptance of cards for smaller purchases is evidence “they see the value” in accepting micropayments.

Read the full PaymentsSource article here.