Judge Reinstates ATM Antitrust Case Against Visa, MasterCard

The District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday reinstated an antitrust lawsuit brought against Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. by a trade association of ATM operators.

Representatives for the two payment-card networks weren't immediately available for comment.

Consumers, independent ATM operators and the National ATM Council filed the lawsuit in 2011. They alleged Visa's and MasterCard's ATM-fee policies suppressed competition because they barred ATM operators from offering discounts to customers who complete transactions over less-costly payment networks.

In 2013, a federal judge in a 39-page ruling, found several problems with the lawsuits and dismissed them.

"The complaints bristle with indignation, but when one strips away the conclusory assertions and the inferences proffered without factual support, there is very little left to consider," wrote Judge Amy Berman Jackson at the time.

In reversing the dismissal, the D.C. appellate court ruled that there were grounds for a case because Visa and MasterCard "member banks used the bank associations to adopt and enforce a supracompetitive pricing regime for ATM access fees," which then made the networks more expensive for ATM operators and consumers to use.

The lawsuit seeks damages against Visa and MasterCard and asks the court to prevent Visa and MasterCard from continuing to restrict how operators charge ATM access fees.

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