NEW YORK, June 23 (UPI) -- Visa USA Inc. and MasterCard International Inc. plus their largest member banks face potentially costly lawsuits over fees they charge U.S. merchants.
Known as transaction or interchange fees, the fees are charged every time a merchant takes a charge on MasterCard or Visa and earn the nation's largest banks more than $20 billion yearly.
While many retailers have negotiated down the fees, others are hiring lawyers, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
And analysts say the emerging litigation could cost Visa, MasterCard and their banks more than the $3 billion settlement merchants won in court last year over debit-card fees.
One such suit, which seeks class-action status, was filed Wednesday in Connecticut and alleges price-fixing, collusion and conspiracy in the setting of interchange fees.
