Let a bot work out what your card payment provider really charges you and ask for a lower rate

🧰 Before you start

• A Grok Bot account (free trial, then The X Subscription Premium)
• 12-24 months of card payment statements from your provider (download the PDFs)
• Your total card sales per month (on the statements or in your till system)
• About an hour

🪜 Steps (tick as you go)

1. ☐
   1. Get Grok Bot

   Install Grok Bot (buttons below) and sign in. In Settings, look for Usage & Billing and set a monthly spending limit so it can never surprise you.

2. ☐
   2. Make a bot for supplier bills

   Create a new bot called Bills Checker. Give it no payment access: it only reads and drafts.

3. ☐
   3. Upload your statements

   Add 12-24 months of statements. More months show your real volume, which is your bargaining power.

4. ☐
   4. Find the real mark-up

   Paste the 'Fee breakdown' prompt. It splits each month into the fixed card-network fees (called interchange: not negotiable) and the provider's own mark-up and extras (negotiable), and works out your effective rate.

5. ☐
   5. Check two months yourself

   Pick two statements and check the totals match. Ask the bot to explain any fee name you don't understand in plain words.

6. ☐
   6. Ask for a pricing review

   Use the 'Pricing review email' prompt. Read the draft, then let the bot send it, or send it yourself.

7. ☐
   7. Counter the first offer

   Providers often offer a small cut first. Paste their reply and ask the bot for a polite counter-offer based on your volume and what competitors publish.

8. ☐
   8. Get it in writing

   Once you agree, ask for the new pricing in writing, then ask the bot to check the next statement shows it.

💬 Prompts to copy

Here are my last [12-24] months of card payment statements. For each month, separate: (a) the fixed fees set by the card networks (interchange and scheme fees), which I can't negotiate, and (b) the provider's own mark-up, monthly fees, terminal rental and any other extras, which I can. Make a table: month, card sales, fixed fees, provider mark-up and extras, effective mark-up as a percentage of sales. Then list every fee name you found with a one-line plain-English explanation, and flag any fee that appeared suddenly or went up. Don't contact anyone.

Draft a short, polite email to my card payment provider [provider name], account [account number]. Say we've processed about [amount] a month by card for [time], that our current mark-up works out at about [x]% over interchange, and ask for a pricing review with a specific target of [y]% plus removal of [named extra fee]. Mention we're comparing options but would like to stay. Keep it friendly and factual. Show me the draft and wait for my OK.

🔗 Links

• Dan Mallatt's post (source): https://x.com/dan_mallatt/status/2112937920328073310
• AI Business Plays: the write-up with a ready prompt: https://aibusinessplays.com/plays/grok-bot-negotiates-card-processing-fees-auto-shop-5k/
• Grok Bot docs: get started: https://docs.x.ai/grok-bot/get-started

From https://usecasy.com/use-case/grokbot-card-processing-fee-cut/ · Guide checked 27 October 2026 · Prices are rough and shown in USD unless stated (MYR where relevant).