US authorities on Monday filed a lawsuit against American Express for allegedly imposing unfair restrictions on merchants that use its cards, the credit card company said. American Express is accused of unfairly trying to prevent merchants from using other credit cards.
"The government's lawsuit claims that terms of American Express merchant contracts, which protect card members against discrimination and disruption at the point of sale, violate US antitrust laws," it said in a statement. US Attorney General Eric Holder will hold a press conference in Washington at 1600 GMT where he was expected to reveal more details on the case.
The Justice Department had also reached settlements over similar charges with American Express rival MasterCard. "The terms of the settlement will be announced later today," MasterCard spokesman Jim Issokson told AFP in a statement.