Mastercard optimistic about class action after Sainsbury's £69m rebate

Sainsbury's has won a £68.6m refund from Mastercard after a Competition and Appeal Tribunal ruling in London, although the judgment left the US credit card giant feeling more optimistic about a looming £19bn UK class-action lawsuit.

MasterCard is involved in a raft of litigation over charges known as interchange fees on the use of its credit and debit cards, having been found by the Europeanm Commission to have abused its dominant market position by charging the anti-competitive rates.

But Mastercard suggested Thursday's tribunal's judgment may have boosted its defence against the class action.

The New York company highlighted the fact the court's conclusion that a lawful level of credit interchange for the UK market would be over 65% higher than the 30 basis points rate cap imposed in the 2015 Interchange Fee Regulation (IFR).

"At the same time, the court criticized and rejected the ‘merchant indifference test,’ the cornerstone for the IFR," Mastercard said in a statement.

"While we are disappointed to see liability as part of the finding, we note that in awarding a limited portion of the claimed damages, the court concluded that Sainsbury’s did not pass through interchange costs to consumers in the form of higher prices.”

The class action is being launched by former Financial Services Ombudsman Walter Merricks, who last week said UK consumers "over-paid to the tune of up to £19bn during a period lasting 16 years" and accused MasterCard of holding on to "illegal profits" it made from the system.

Mastercard shares were up 0.5% at $90.75 after half an hour of trading on Thursday.