Berger & Montague is Co-Lead Counsel in this proposed class
action brought on behalf of all merchants who accepted Visa and/or
MasterCard credit or signature debit cards since January of
2004. Those merchants have paid artificially inflated
merchant discount fees to their acquiring banks, either directly or
through third-party processors. In many instances, those fees
are bundled with other fees on merchants' invoices, and not
explicitly referenced. Visa, MasterCard and several large
banks who have played substantial roles in operating those networks
are defendants in the case. However, the class includes all
merchants who have accepted the above-referenced cards during the
relevant period, without regard to whether they have dealt directly
with any of the defendants.
Plaintiffs allege that defendants have illegally fixed the
interchange fee, which comprises the majority of (and serves as a
floor for) the merchant discount fee. Acquiring banks
agree to pay interchange fees to the card issuer's bank pursuant to
every credit or signature debit card transaction using a Visa or
MasterCard payment card. During the relevant period,
Visa and MasterCard fixed interchange fees via their respective
boards of directors, which were comprised primarily of
representatives of their member banks. Visa and
MasterCard have effectively precluded merchants from avoiding
interchange fees through a series of restrictive rules, which bind
all Visa and MasterCard member banks, as well as all merchants who
accept Visa and MasterCard payment cards. Plaintiffs seek
monetary damages, as well as injunctive relief precluding the
networks' enforcement of certain restrictive rules.