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He United States Department of Justice This Tuesday he filed a lawsuit against Visawhich he accuses of illegally maintaining a monopoly on the networks of debit cards in the country.
According to the complaint, filed in a court of New Yorkthe practices of Visa resulted in billions of dollars in additional charges for consumers y American companies, in addition to reducing innovation in debit payments.
The lawsuit comes after years of investigations by United States competition authorities into the business practices of Visa.
“We claim that Visa has illegally gained the power to charge fees that far exceed what he could charge in a competitive market”said the attorney general (Minister of Justice), Merrick Garlandin a statement.
“Visa is the first name many debit card users see when they pull out their card to buy something. But they don’t see the role that Visa plays behind the scenes,” he added. Garland later, talking to reporters.
“There, he controls a complex network of businesses, financial institutions and consumers” and behaves like a “monopoly,” he added.
According to the complaint, Visa charges nearly $8 billion annually for the use of its network in EU on the total volume processed.
Globally, Visa processes $12.3 billion in payments annually. He Department of Justice denounced that the Visa firm imposes agreements that are exclusive to merchants and banks, and thus penalizes clients who use other debit networks or alternative payment systems.
In addition, he points out that Visa seeks to neutralize potential threats to its market dominance from technology companies y startups, through partnership agreements rather than allowing them to compete directly.
Visa imposes volume minimums to process and thus punishes businesses and banks for use competitors, even when rivals offer lower prices, he maintains.
Through these tactics, Visa maintains a “huge moat” of protection around its business, which allows you to make juicy profits, the text adds.
In an official statement, the legal advisor of Visa, Julie Rottenbergdescribed the legal action as “without merit.”
Furthermore, he rejected that Visa exercise a monopoly, and described the debit card market as “a constantly expanding universe of companies that offer new ways to pay for goods and services”.
“When businesses and consumers choose Visa, it is because of our secure and reliable network, (our) strong fraud protection, and the value we offer,” Rottenberg added.
In Wall Street Visa fell sharply, 5.49%, after the announcement of the lawsuit.
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2024-09-30 20:39:25