Wal-Mart files $5 billion suit against Visa over card fees

Bentonville, Ark. – Wal-Mart Stores Inc. filed suit with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas suing Visa for $5 billion, alleging that the financial services company overcharges on the credit and debit card swipe fees it charges retailer.



The suit claims that Visa colluded with banks to fix swipe fees between January 2004 and November 2012, forcing it to raise prices and reduce customer service, resulting in lost retail sales.



Wal-Mart claims the swipe fees violated federal antitrust regulations and generated $350 billion for card issuers and banks during the period covered by the suit.



Wal-Mart would not publicly comment on the possibility of suing MasterCard. Other major retailers that did not take part in the class action settlement include Target and Amazon.com.



In December, a judge approved a settlement over card fees between 19 merchants and Visa and MasterCard. The settlement was originally valued at $7.25 billion. But it was reduced to about $5.7 billion because some retailers opted out.