Discover Financial Services (DFS.N), unit Pulse Network has agreed to settle a lawsuit in Texas accusing Visa of obstructing competition in the multibillion-dollar debit card network services market, causing merchants to pay higher fees.
Pulse and Visa disclosed the accord in a court filing, on Friday in federal court in Houston, where Pulse had sued the payment card giant in 2014. Pulse said it was dismissing its case with “prejudice,” meaning that it cannot be refiled.
The court filing, signed by both sides, did not reveal the terms of the settlement. The companies did not respond to requests for comment or additional information.
Pulse’s lawsuit said Visa set up a monthly and per-transaction pricing structure that unfairly incentivized merchants against switching to other card networks.
The lawsuit sought compensation for lost profits and a court order to “promote healthy competition for general purpose debit card network services.”
A trial was scheduled for 2026. Visa had denied any wrongdoing.
The case, had languished for years before being dismissed in 2018 by U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes. The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals revived the lawsuit and assigned it to a new judge in 2022, questioning whether Hughes had shown “ingrained skepticism about Pulse’s claims.”
The case is Pulse Network LLC v. Visa Inc, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, No. 4:14-cv-03391.
For Pulse: David Beck of Beck Redden
For Visa: Liz Ryan of Weil, Gotshal & Manges
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