American Express to Pay $17,500,000 in New York Class Action Over Alleged Anti-Steering Rules

American Express is agreeing to a $17,500,000 settlement in a federal antitrust class action filed in New York that challenges its alleged anti-steering rules for merchants. The case covers consumers who made purchases between 2015 and 2022 at 38 businesses in nine US states, but the settlement will be distributed only to a subset of Illinois shoppers. Eligible Illinois residents used non-rewards Visa, Mastercard or Discover credit cards at specified merchants, and they must submit claims by May 19 before a judge considers final approval on June 17.