The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday, Nov. 11, edition that Visa and Mastercard announced a revised $38-billion (U.S.) settlement with merchants who accused them of overcharging for credit card acceptance, aiming to satisfy a judge who deemed a previous agreement inadequate. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe reports that this settlement ends 20 years of litigation over alleged antitrust violations related to "swipe fees." The accord faced pushback from merchant groups who argued it does not address concerns raised by U.S. District Judge Margo Brodie in her rejection of a $30-billion (U.S.) settlement in June, 2024. The National Retail Federation and Merchants Payments Coalition argue that businesses still face high costs, especially for accepting popular rewards cards. Also known as interchange fees, swipe fees totalled $111.2-billion (U.S.) in the United States in 2024, up from $100.8-billion (U.S.) in 2023 and quadruple the level in 2009, the National Retail Federation said. The settlement calls for Visa and Mastercard to lower swipe fees, which averaged 2.35 per cent in 2024 and typically range from 2 per cent to 2.5 per cent, by 0.1 percentage point for five years.