Authorized by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
— Class Action Settlement Notice —
TO: All merchants in the U.S. who accepted Visa or Mastercard credit or debit cards at any time on or after December 18, 2020.
This notice (“Notice”) has been authorized by the Court to inform you of an agreement to resolve the equitable relief claims in a class action lawsuit, In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation, No. 05-md-01720 (BMC)(JAM)(E.D.N.Y.). The lawsuit alleges that Visa and Mastercard, independently and in conjunction with certain banks, violated antitrust laws and caused merchants to pay excessive fees for accepting Visa and Mastercard credit and debit cards, among others, by adopting interchange fees and other network rules, which the litigation has claimed constituted illegal price fixing, unreasonable restraint of trade, and monopoly.
The Defendants say they did nothing wrong. They maintain that their business practices are lawful, justifiable, and the result of independent competition, and that they have benefited merchants and consumers.
The Court has not decided who is right because the parties agreed to establish a settlement, which was preliminarily approved by the Court on June 9, 2026.
A. What Merchants Will Gain from the Settlement During the lawsuit, the Court previously certified a Equitable Relief Class of Claimants under Rule 23(b)(2) and has now preliminarily approved a settlement of the Class of Claimants’ claims (the “Rule 23(b)(2) Class of Claimants Settlement” or “Settlement”). Under the Settlement, Visa and Mastercard have agreed to make substantive changes to the Visa and Mastercard rules applicable to merchants who accept their cards as a form of payment.
The Claimant Group includes all individuals, companies, and entities that accepted Visa or Mastercard cards in the United States at any time during the period between December 18, 2020, and the date of preliminary settlement approval, or June 9, 2026. The Court has set November 16, 2026, as the date for a fairness and final approval hearing (the “Fairness Hearing”) regarding the Settlement, after the claimant group members have had an opportunity to evaluate the Settlement and exercise their rights, as set forth in the Notice. Further information regarding the Settlement and the Fairness Hearing will be posted at www.InterchangeEquitableReliefSettlement.com.
Pursuant to the Group Settlement of Rule 23(b)(2), Mastercard and Visa will modify certain rules to maintain, establish, or expand the circumstances under which merchants may, among other things, do the following:
• Refuse to accept Visa or Mastercard Commercial Credit Cards or Premium Consumer Credit Cards.
• Charge customers a fee for using any Visa or Mastercard Credit Card, which may vary depending on the type of card used (e.g., a different fee for rewards and non-rewards cards).
• Offer discounts to customers who do not pay with Visa or Mastercard Credit Cards, or based on the financial institution that issued the Visa or Mastercard Credit Card.
• Refuse to accept Visa or Mastercard cards at all points of sale operating under the
same name or business banner, even if that merchant accepts those same cards at points of sale operating under a different name or business banner.
• Participate in pilot programs whereby they accept Visa or Mastercard credit cards at some, but not all, points of sale operating under the same name or business banner for a limited period, or test various acceptance, surcharge, and discount options at some, but not all, points of sale operating under the same name or business banner, including the non-acceptance of Premium Consumer or Commercial Credit Cards, for a limited period.
Accepting some digital wallets at physical locations but rejecting others, enabling some digital wallets for online transactions but not others, and “directing the use of certain cards” within a digital wallet under the same rules that govern the “practice of encouraging the use of certain cards” among traditional cards.
• Benefit from reductions in credit card interchange rates: Visa and Mastercard will reduce the published and negotiated interchange rates for U.S. merchant credit cards.
• Benefit from capped interchange rates: The Settlement Agreement reduces and caps Standard Consumer Credit Card rates to a specified level and otherwise limits credit card interchange rates, so that neither Visa nor Mastercard will increase any of their published interchange rates above the rates in effect as of March 31, 2025, and each will reduce its network-wide average interchange rate to or below the specified level.
•Form Merchant Buying Groups that meet certain criteria to negotiate with Visa and Mastercard.
•Receive access to a Merchant Education Program, established and administered under the Settlement Agreement, to help understand and maximize the benefits of the rule changes, including how to effectively implement “targeting” practices for the use of certain cards in states that restrict surcharges.
B. Monetary Aspects of the Rule 23(b)(2) Group Settlement
There is no monetary payment to the members of the Group of Claimants in this Settlement. This Rule 23(b)(2) Group Settlement applies only to the Equitable Relief Claims stipulated in the complaint. Claims for monetary damages arising from the defendants’ alleged antitrust violations are subject to a separate settlement for the Rule 23(b)(3) Group of Claimants. For information about the Rule 23(b)(3) Group of Claimants Cash Settlement, please visit www.PaymentCardSettlement.com.
The Settlement establishes that Visa and Mastercard will make certain payments into the Escrow Account of the Claimants Group Settlement under Rule 23(b)(2), and this money will be used to pay for:
• The cost of administering the settlement and the notice, as approved by the Court;
• The cost of the Merchant Education Program expenses, as approved by the Court;
• The cost of an independent auditor to ensure that Visa and Mastercard comply with their} credit card interchange fee reduction commitments; and
• Attorneys’ fees and expenses, including payments for services rendered by the designated Plaintiffs’ Group Representatives, as approved by the Court.
The money in this fund will be distributed only if the Court grants final approval of the Settlement, and the money for attorneys’ fees and expenses, and Payments for Services to the Plaintiffs’ Group Representatives, will be distributed only if the Settlement has become final and all appeals have been exhausted, and the Court approves the request for attorneys’ fees and expenses, and the Payments for Services to the Plaintiffs’ Group Representatives.
(The Court will grant final approval of the Settlement) Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses, and Payments for Services to the Plaintiffs’ Group Representatives: In respect of work performed up to and including the Court’s final approval of the Settlement, as well as any
work to be performed in the future, the Plaintiffs’ Group Attorneys will request from the Court attorneys’ fees and reimbursement of necessary and reasonable litigation expenses, as well as any award of payments for services to the appointed Plaintiffs’ Group Representatives that the Court may grant, in an amount not to exceed $206,000,000. The Settlement Agreement requires Visa and Mastercard to pay these fees and expenses separately from any other financial obligations of the Settlement, and such fees and expenses will not reduce any other benefit of the Settlement; the Plaintiffs’ Group members will not be required to pay any amount to cover such fees and expenses.
C. Legal Rights and Options
Merchants included in this claim have the legal right to object to the settlement. The deadline to object is September 14, 2026. To learn how to object, visit www.InterchangeEquitableReliefSettlement.com or call toll-free 877-318-7713.
Note: You cannot be excluded from the Rule 23(b)(2) Group Settlement.
For more information about these rights and options, visit www.InterchangeEquitableReliefSettlement.com or call toll-free 877-318-7713.
D. If the Court Grants Final Approval of the Settlement
If the Court grants final approval of the Settlement, the members of the Claimant Group under Rule 23(b)(2) will be bound by the terms of the Settlement and will waive all claims against all the exonerated parties listed in the Settlement Agreement. The Settlement will discharge and resolve all claims by payment card acceptors against Visa, Mastercard, or other defendants that were or could have been alleged in the complaint, including claims based on interchange fees or other charges, no-surcharge rules, no-discount rules, all-card acceptance rules, and other network rules.
The Settlement will also resolve any claims from merchants accepting payment cards based on the future effect of any Visa or Mastercard rule as in effect on or before December 18, 2020, and until the Final Settlement Date (as defined in the Settlement Agreement), the amended rules provided in this Settlement, or any other rules substantially similar to such rules. The release will not preclude the filing of claims related to certain specified standard business disputes that arise as part of the normal course of business.
For more information about the relief, see the Group Settlement Agreement for the amended Rule 23(b)(2) Claimants at www.InterchangeEquitableReliefSettlement.com.
E. Court Hearing Regarding this Settlement
A court hearing will be held on November 16, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. ET, to decide whether to approve the proposed Settlement, the claimant’s attorneys’ fees and expenses, and payments for services rendered to the Group Claimants’ representatives. The hearing will be held at:
United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York U.S. District Judge Brian M. Cogan 225 Cadman Plaza East Brooklyn, NY 11201
You are not required to attend the Court hearing or hire an attorney, although you may do so at your own expense. The Court appointed the law firms of Hilliard Shadowen LLP; Grant & Eisenhofer P.A.; Freed Kanner London & Millen LLC; and Nussbaum Law Group, P.C. to represent the Group of Plaintiffs (“Group of Plaintiffs Attorneys”).
F. Do you have questions?
For more information about this case (In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation, MDL 1720), you can: Call toll-free: 877-318-7713
Visit: www.InterchangeEquitableReliefSettlement.com Write to the Group of Plaintiffs Administrator: Interchange B2 Class Administrator, P.O. Box 6340, Portland, OR 97228-6340 or email the Claimant Group Administrator at info@InterchangeEquitableReliefSettlement.com
