The U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit against Visa, a payment technology company, on the 24th (local time).
According to CNN and the New York Times (NYT), the Ministry of Justice claimed in a statement related to the lawsuit that Visa abused its dominant position in the debit card market for more than a decade, forcing it to use the visa payment network instead of its competitors, and preventing new companies from entering the market.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said, “Visas have illegally accumulated the authority to pay fees far beyond the fees that can be charged in competitive markets,” and added, “Visitors and banks pass on these costs to consumers by raising prices or lowering quality or service.”
He also argued that “Visa provides generous financial incentives and encourages competitors entering the market to become partners by threatening them with additional fees.”
Visa said in a statement that it would respond to the lawsuit, refuting that competition is intensifying online. “This lawsuit ignores that Visa is only one of several companies in the growing debit card market and that there are growing entrants,” Visa said.
According to the complaint, more than 60% of direct transactions in the United States are made through Visa’s direct payment network. Visa is said to be able to collect $7 billion in fees through this.
Merchants in the U.S. have long complained that credit card companies such as Visa charge excessive fees. A franchise group agreed with Visa and Mastercard in March for $30 billion after years of antitrust litigation.
JENNIFER KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
