MasterCard Incorporated announced plans to go public and the establishment a new corporate governance structure that will include the appointment of a new board of directors. A timeline for the initial public offering was not released; however MasterCard indicated that public investors are expected to hold Class A common stock representing 49% of the company's equity and 83% of its voting rights. Part of the proceeds from the proposed initial public offering will be used to redeem shares of Class B common stock from its existing financial institution shareholders.

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Visa USA and MasterCard International have gained dismissal of an antitrust lawsuit by a group of California merchants. The suit had alleged that the card companies violated antitrust laws indetermining merchant discount rates. The judge also dismissed claims against Bank of America, Wells Fargo and U.S. Bancorp.

In his ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey White determined that the merchantslacked standing in an antitrust case as they are indirect purchasers, since Interchange fees are charged to acquirers who pass along fees to merchants as discount rates. The ruling, in effect, determined that Visa and MasterCard are not directly involved in setting merchant discount rates. The case had sought certification as a class action to represent merchants nationwide.

Though this case involved only California merchants, if not overturned on appeal, it could affect other merchant class action lawsuits pending against Visa USA and MasterCard International, such as the one filed by Kroger and other major retailers against Visa earlier this month.