Retailers file interchange settlement appeal

Retailers file interchange settlement appeal

The National Retail Federation has filed an appeal of the $5.7 billion settlement with Visa and MasterCard over credit card swipe fees green-lighted by a judge last month.

The NRF is asking the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn District Judge John Gleeson's ruling, in which he said that he was satisfied with the settlement in the class action case, which was agreed in July 2012.

The original ruling appeared to put an end to a seven-year long tussle between retailers, banks and card schemes over the fees charged for processing credit card transactions.

However, major retailers rejected the deal, kicking off an escalating litigation battle and despite Gleeson's latest ruling NRF general counsel Mallory Duncan says that the retail industry does not accept the deal.

"A majority of the original plaintiffs in the case repudiated the settlement as soon as they saw its terms, the nation's largest retailers have spoken out against it, and close to 8,000 retailers and merchants have formally rejected the proposal," she argues.

Duncan claims that the only people pleased with the settlement are the lawyers, the court and Visa and MasterCard "because it means they can continue collecting tens of billions of dollars in hidden fees".

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