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    2010-01-06nytimes.com

    Every day, millions of Americans stand at store checkout counters and make a seemingly random decision: after swiping their debit card, they choose whether to punch in a code, or to sign their name.

    It is a pointless distinction to most consumers, since the price is the same either way. But behind the scenes, billions of dollars are at stake.

    When you sign a debit card receipt at a large retailer, the store pays your bank an average of 75 cents for every $100 spent, more than twice as much as when you punch in a four-digit code.



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