Visa and Mastercard reach settlement over interchange fees and merchant choice #
Visa and Mastercard have reached a landmark settlement aimed at resolving long-running disputes with merchants over interchange fees and transaction routing, according to Finextra. The agreement is expected to give retailers greater flexibility in choosing how payments are processed, while addressing antitrust concerns around network competition
The settlement follows years of litigation in both the U.S. and Europe, where merchants alleged that card networks imposed unfairly high fees and limited their ability to route payments through alternative processors. Under the new terms, Visa and Mastercard will introduce changes that increase merchant choice, enhance fee transparency, and support compliance with evolving regulatory frameworks
Industry analysts view the settlement as a potential turning point in the global card payments ecosystem. By balancing merchant flexibility with network integrity, the agreement could reshape how interchange fees are structured and set a precedent for other markets where similar disputes remain unresolved.