MasterCard Still Faces Antitrust Suits After $1.8 Billion Settlement with AmEx

Despite this week's decision in which MasterCard agreed to pay up to $1.8 billion to American Express to settle the antitrust allegations that it kept AmEx out of the U.S. bank-issued credit card market, the company still has other significant antitrust lawsuits on its horizon. "MasterCard's settlement with American Express is one more step in its attempts to extricate itself from its history of anti-competitive conduct," says K. Craig Wildfang, a Minneapolis-based partner with Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P., who leads the firm's antitrust litigation practice. "However, still larger matters remain unresolved, including MasterCard's multi-billion-dollar exposure in the U.S. merchant litigation over credit card interchange fees, as well as the many investigations around the world relating to interchange fees." Wildfang, who represents those merchants currently involved in a complex antitrust litigation against Visa, MasterCard, Bank of America and other major banks relating to interchange fees, is available to discuss the impact of this settlement, as well as the ongoing interchange fees antitrust litigation. [07/03/2008] News Contact: Vivian Hood Email: vhood@jaffepr.com Phone: 904-220-1915