The Department of Justice is suing Visa
Yesterday, the Department of Justice announced that it’s suing Visa for monopolizing the debit payment market, alleging that the company paid competitors like PayPal to stay out of its way and entered into various agreements with merchants that meant they could face penalties for using alternative providers.
Debit dominance
On the face of it, Visa looks a lot like a monopoly. The company’s ~60% share of all US debit card transactions helps it rack up more than $7 billion in processing fees, according to the DOJ, with Attorney General Merrick Garland observing: “Visa’s unlawful conduct affects not just the price of one thing – but the price of nearly everything”. It’s not just in America either, as debit payments have become an increasingly important part of Visa’s global business too.
In 2009, Visa processed $2.68 trillion in payments, with around a third coming from debit transactions, while credit cards accounted for almost 55%.
See the full article here.