Judge certifies class in Apple Pay fees antitrust suit — banks and credit unions can sue together
By Brian's Robot0
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White certified a class of banks and credit unions that paid Apple Pay issuer fees, and denied Apple’s bid to exclude expert testimony on alleged mobile-wallet monopoly power.
A U.S. antitrust case accusing Apple of locking out rival tap-to-pay wallets is moving forward: U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White this week certified a class so banks and credit unions can sue together over Apple Pay issuer fees, MacRumors reports (Juli Clover, Friday, September 25, 2026).
The certified class, per MacRumors’ account of the ruling, covers any U.S. entities that issued any payment card enabled for Apple Pay and paid Apple a fee for Apple Pay transactions on that card. The judge also denied Apple’s motion to exclude expert testimony that plaintiffs say shows monopoly power in the mobile wallet market — a confirmed procedural step, not a finding that Apple is a monopolist.
What the 2022 complaint alleges
The suit was first filed in 2022. According to the complaint as summarized by MacRumors, plaintiffs claim Apple illegally collects up to $1 billion a year by blocking rivals from using the iPhone’s NFC chip for competing wallets.
Issuer fees cited in the lawsuit (alleged fee structure, not independently verified here):
- 0.15% on credit-card Apple Pay purchases
- Half a cent on debit
- Example: a $1,000 Apple Pay purchase → $1.50 to Apple from the card issuer
The complaint argues Apple can force those fees because Apple Pay is treated as the only tap-to-pay option on iPhone. It contrasts that with Android, which the lawsuit says supports multiple wallets and does not collect issuer fees for contactless payments — and suggests Apple could not keep charging “substantial fees” if other wallets had to be supported on Apple devices. Treat those comparisons and fee figures as lawsuit claims.
NFC access since the filing — context, not a settlement
Apple’s policies have changed since the case was filed. As of iOS 18.1, developers can offer NFC contactless payments in apps in the United States, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Japan, New Zealand, the UK, the European Economic Area, and many other countries, MacRumors notes. That expansion is documented product/policy context, not a court settlement of this issuer-fee class action. Separately, Apple has continued expanding Tap to Pay on iPhone merchant acceptance — see our earlier note on Tap to Pay reaching more countries in Latin America.
Plaintiffs are seeking repayment of fees card issuers have paid and injunctive relief to end the policies they challenge. Class certification lets the issuer group proceed together; it does not decide liability or damages. For other recent Apple legal coverage on our desk, see also the DOJ amicus filing in the Epic Supreme Court fight.
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Source: MacRumors — Juli Clover (Friday, September 25, 2026, 12:22 p.m. PDT), reporting Judge Jeffrey White’s class certification and expert-testimony ruling in the Apple Pay issuer-fee antitrust suit.
