Visa and Mastercard found to breach competition law by charging excessive interchange fees

From Yahoo Finance: 2025-06-27 13:31:00

Global payments processors Visa and Mastercard have been found to infringe competition law by charging retailers default multilateral interchange fees, according to a London tribunal ruling. The decision came after linked lawsuits brought by hundreds of merchants. Visa and Mastercard both plan to seek permission to appeal the ruling.

The ruling was hailed as a significant win for merchants who have been paying excessive interchange fees. Litigation over multilateral interchange fees has been ongoing for over a decade. This is the first time that Visa and Mastercard’s commercial card and inter-regional multilateral interchange fees have been found to breach competition law.

Visa and Mastercard have both expressed their disagreement with the decision and their intent to appeal. Visa believes that interchange fees are essential for a secure digital payments ecosystem. Mastercard called the decision deeply flawed and stated they will seek permission to appeal. The liability trial took place in early 2024, with another trial pending to determine if any overcharge was passed on to customers.

Read more: Mastercard, Visa’s merchant fees breach competition law, UK tribunal rules