The Visa and Mastercard $7.25 billion settlement was submitted to United States District Judge John Gleeson for approval, on Friday, in what could end up becoming the largest antitrust settlement in the history of the country.

The settlement has stirred a large resistance among the plaintiffs, including the National Grocers Association, National Retail Federation, Wal-Mart Stores and Target Corporation, who claim that the agreements of the settlement do little to stop Visa and Mastercard from raising fees in the future.

History of the Case

The seven-year-old litigation arose from businesses that claimed Visa and Mastercard colluded with each other in preventing businesses from passing the credit card swipes imposed on them by the processing giants over to their customers. Swipe fees can range between 1 and 3 percent, which sets the vast majority of businesses back substantially each year.

If the settlement isn’t approved by Gleeson, negotiators from both sides will be forced to sit down and re-asses the terms and conditions of the settlement.

Make sure to check back with CCP.net for Gleeson’s decision and an analysis of how its approval could potentially affect businesses across the country.