Welcome to the website for the In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation.
The Court has preliminarily approved a proposed settlement of the equitable relief claims in a class action lawsuit, called In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation, No. 05-md-01720 (BMC)(JAM) (E.D.N.Y.) (the “Action”). The lawsuit claims that Visa and Mastercard separately, and together with certain banks, violated antitrust laws and caused merchants to pay excessive fees for accepting Visa and Mastercard credit and debit cards, including by adopting interchange rules and rates, and other network rules, which the lawsuit has claimed constituted unlawful price fixing, unreasonable restraints of trade, and monopolization.
During the lawsuit, the Court previously certified a Rule 23(b)(2) Equitable Relief Class (the “Rule 23(b)(2) Class” or “Class”) and has now preliminarily approved a settlement of the Class claims (the “Rule 23(b)(2) Class Settlement” or “Settlement”). A separate settlement, approved by the Court in 2019, addressed claims for a Rule 23(b)(3) monetary damages class (the “Cash Settlement Class”). You may visit the website www.PaymentCardSettlement.com for more information concerning the Cash Settlement Class.
The Rule 23(b)(2) Class Settlement will require Visa and Mastercard to change certain rules for merchants who accept their cards, including changes that will preserve, establish, or expand the circumstances in which merchants may do the following:
- Decline acceptance of Visa or Mastercard-Branded Commercial Credit Cards and/or Premium Consumer Credit Cards.
- Surcharge customers a fee for the use of any Visa or Mastercard-Branded Credit Cards, including based on the type of card used (e.g., a different surcharge for rewards and non-rewards cards).
- Offer discounts to customers who do not pay with Visa or Mastercard-Branded Credit Cards, or based on the financial institution that issued the Visa or Mastercard-Branded Credit Card.
- Decline acceptance of Visa or Mastercard-Branded Cards at all outlets that operate under the same trade name or banner, even if that merchant accepts those same cards at outlets that operate under a different trade name or banner.
- Engage in Pilot Programs whereby they accept Visa or Mastercard-Branded Credit Cards at some but not all outlets operating under the same trade name or banner for a limited duration or test out various acceptance, surcharging and discounting options at some but not all outlets operating under the same trade name or banner, including not accepting Commercial or Premium Consumer Credit Cards, for a limited duration.
- Accept some digital wallets at brick-and-mortar locations but decline others and enable some digital wallets for on-line transactions but not enable others, and “steer” among the cards within a digital wallet under the same rules that govern steering among traditional cards.
- Receive the benefit of credit interchange rate reductions: Visa and Mastercard will reduce published and negotiated Credit Card interchange rates for U.S. merchants.
- Receive the benefit of Credit Card interchange rate caps: The Settlement Agreement reduces and caps “Standard” Consumer Credit Card rates at a specified level and otherwise caps Credit Card interchange rates, such that neither Visa nor Mastercard will increase any of its published Credit Card interchange rates above the rates effective as of March 31, 2025 and each will reduce its network-wide average Credit Card interchange rate to or below the specified level.
- Form Merchant Buying Groups that meet certain criteria to negotiate with Visa and Mastercard.
- Receive access to a Merchant Education Program, established and administered under the Settlement Agreement, to help understand and maximize the benefits of the rule changes, including how to effectively “steer” in States that restrict surcharging.
The rule changes are explained in greater detail below, as well as in the memoranda of law in support of preliminary approval of the Rule 23(b)(2) Class Settlement, and in the Settlement Agreement, available here.
This website has important information for merchants that accepted Visa or Mastercard at any time between December 18, 2020, and June 9, 2026, (the date of preliminary settlement approval). The site explains the Settlement in the class action lawsuit. The site also explains your rights and options in this case.
For the full terms of the Settlement, you should look at the Superseding and Amended Class Settlement Agreement of the Rule 23(b)(2) Class Plaintiffs and Defendants, and its Appendices (“Settlement Agreement”), available here or by calling toll-free 877-318-7713. In the event of any conflict between the terms of this website and the Settlement Agreement, the terms of the Settlement Agreement shall control.