Visa, Mastercard settle long-running antitrust suit over swipe fees with merchants | KLRT [Video]

NEW YORK (AP) — Visa and Mastercard announced a major settlement with U.S. merchants on Tuesday, potentially ending nearly two decades of litigation over the fees charged every time a credit or debit card is used in a store or restaurant.

The deal would lower and cap the fees charged by Visa and Mastercard and allow small businesses to collectively bargain for rates with the payment processors in a similar way that the large merchants do on their own now.

Industry groups for retailers both small and large said the settlement is a positive development, but far more needs to be done to remedy the current swipe-fee situation. They noted that the lowered fees would be only for a limited period of time — three to five years — after which the fees would return to their current levels.

“While this settlement is a step in the right direction and …