Weekly News Update

Payments News Update – June 21, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Visa Settles Discover Unit's Antitrust Lawsuit Over Debit Card Network Reuters – June 14, 2024 Discover Financial Services unit Pulse Network has agreed to settle a lawsuit in Texas accusing Visa of obstructing competition in the multibillion-dollar debit card network services market, causing merchants to pay higher fees. Pulse and Visa disclosed the accord in a...

Payments News Update – June 14, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Why Illinois' Budget Bill Has Bankers Sounding the Alarm American Banker – June 10, 2024 (subscription required) A first-of-its-kind swipe fee measure recently passed in Illinois could have dramatic implications for banks both within and beyond the state's borders, experts say. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, late on Friday signed a budget bill...

Payments News Update – June 7, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: CFPB to Consult Consumers and Small Businesses on Open Banking Standards PYMNTS – June 5, 2024 In the move to solidify the framework for open banking, the field for just who will help set the standards is wide open. News came Wednesday (June 5) that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has set in motion what it terms a “process” for setting data...

Payments News Update – May 31, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: The MPC Fires Back at Claims Merchants Won’t Pass Along CCCA Savings to Consumers Digital Transactions News – May 24, 2024 Claims by banks that merchants won’t pass along savings from the Credit Card Competition Act to consumers are grossly misleading and do not reflect the economic realities merchants face, argues the Merchants Payments Coalition, a lobbying...

Payments News Update – May 24, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Britain Seeks to Rein in Mastercard and Visa Fees on Retailers Reuters – May 21, 2024 There is little evidence that big fee hikes imposed by U.S. duo Visa and Mastercard on retailers have led to a major improvement in service, Britain's Payment Systems Regulator said on Tuesday, flagging concerns competition was not working. Visa and Mastercard have long...

Payments News Update – May 17, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Merchants and Banks Prepare for Battle Over the Fed’s Proposed Debit Adjustments Digital Transactions News – May 14, 2024 The National Retail Federation and the Merchants Payments Coalition have lined up against the Federal Reserve, arguing that while a rate reduction on debit card transactions is welcome, the Fed’s proposed pricing does not go far enough. The...

Payments News Update – May 10, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Senate Leaders Committed to CCCA Vote, Marshall Says Punchbowl News – May 3, 2024 Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) told reporters he’d received a commitment from Senate leadership to hold a vote on the Credit Card Competition Act before the end of the 118th Congress, the senator’s latest move to up pressure on the chamber’s leadership. Marshall spoke to...

Payments News Update – May 3, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Major US Retailers Blast Mastercard, Visa Card Fees Settlement Reuters – April 29, 2024 Target, Walmart, and other retailers have urged a U.S. judge to reject a proposed class-action settlement with Visa and Mastercard over credit and debit card fees, saying the accord does not go far enough. The companies opposed the settlement in a series of filings on Friday...

Payments News Update – April 26, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: CFPB Internal Shakeup to Supercharge Fintech, Big Bank Cops Bloomberg Law – April 19, 2024 (subscription may be required) The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s enforcement and supervision teams, including those overseeing financial technology firms and other nonbank lenders, will soon get a direct line to Director Rohit Chopra to correct potential...

Payments News Update – April 19, 2024

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: ANTITRUST—E.D.N.Y.: 7-Eleven, Home Depot Claims Against Visa Defendants Survive Summary Judgment VitalLaw – April 15, 2024 Although 7-Eleven and Home Depot claims survived, the court deemed the equitable relief class debit monopolization claim “economically senseless” while their credit monopolization claim lacked necessary evidence about both sides of the...