MasterCard to Pay Its Debts Off Early

Credit cards don’t just strong-arm people; they strong-arm businesses, too. Or at least try to. Back in the day, MasterCard tried to force businesses to accept debit cards branded with MasterCard at businesses where those credit cards were accepted. Many businesses (including Wal-Mart) took umbrage, claiming that the move created, in effect, a trust situation and tied the acceptance of debit to the acceptance of credit cards. Businesses claimed MasterCard was threatening them with revocation of the ability to accept its credit cards if they did not also accept branded debit cards.
In 1996, an antitrust suit was filed. In 2003, …read more