Visa Inc said the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has initiated an inquiry into whether the payments processor’s actions prohibited merchants from using other debit payment networks.
Bloomberg reported on Wednesday the regulator was investigating whether Visa and rival Mastercard Inc blocked retailers from routing card transactions over alternative networks such as Pulse, NYCE and Star.
Visa in a regulatory filing said it received a letter from the FTC on Nov. 4, and the company is cooperating with the bureau.
The inquiry could spell fresh trouble for the world’s two largest payments processors which settled a European Union antitrust probe in April this year over card fees.
