Visa Sets Aside $1.5 Billion in a Litigation Escrow Account

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Visa Inc. said it allocated $1.5 billion to cover litigation costs.

The global payments firm authorized the deposit of the money into a litigation escrow account that’s used for covered litigation, it said in a filing Thursday, without specifying any particular legal matters.

Visa’s ongoing lawsuits include a long-running dispute over credit-card swipe fees. The firm and rival Mastercard Inc. agreed to cap the fees in a $30 billion deal with retailers, but a federal judge in Brooklyn formally rejected the settlement in June.

The firm also faces litigation from the US Justice Department, which alleged in a lawsuit this week that Visa illegally monopolized the debit card market. The newly authorized funds in the escrow account wouldn’t apply to any costs related to the Justice Department’s antitrust lawsuit.

Top photo: A Visa debit card arranged in New York, US, on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024. The US Justice Department sued Visa Inc., alleging the global payments giant illegally monopolized the debit card market, in the Biden administration’s first major antitrust case in the financial services industry. Photographer: Gabby Jones/Bloomberg.