If you have a business that accepts Visa and Mastercard, you may be able to get a refund of some of the fees you paid in the past. The In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation, or more colloquially known as “Swipeopoly”, was an action brought by a class of merchant plaintiffs against all the major credit card issuers. The plaintiffs alleged that the interchange or swipe fees charged by the card issuers to complete a transaction constituted a conspiracy to charge artificially high fixed fees. 

Who Can File a Claim? 

This case was brought in 2009 but it wasn’t until March 2023, that the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed final approval of a $5.5 Billion settlement in favor of the class of plaintiffs. Businesses that were accepting Visa and/or Mastercard between January 1, 2004 and January 25, 2019, can file a claim to receive a portion of the settlement funds as a part of the plaintiff class. 

There are some exceptions. Financial institutions that have issued Visa-Branded or Mastercard-Branded cards or acquired transactions from Visa-Branded or Mastercard-Branded cards cannot make a claim.

What Is the Deadline?

Initially, the deadline to file a claim by business owners was May 31, 2024. However, on May 14, 2024, the Court announced that the deadline for merchants to submit their claims was extended to August 30, 2024.

How Do You File a Claim?

A claim can be filed on this court-authorized website: https://paymentcardsettlement.com/en. 

What Else Is in the Settlement?

Visa and Mastercard agreed to lower their swipe fees and refrain from raising them until 2030.

If you have any questions about whether you or your business qualifies for a portion of the settlement funds, or if you would like our firm to submit the claim for you, please feel free to contact one of our attorneys.