BANKING & FINANCE - April 27, 1995

MasterCard Cooperating With U.S. Inquiry: MasterCard International Inc. is cooperating with a Justice Department investigation into whether credit card associations violate antitrust laws, said the company’s chief executive, H. Eugene Lockhart. Since the government launched its investigation into the industry last year, Justice Department officials have met with MasterCard executives on at least four occasions and have issued requests for information, Lockhart said. Investigators are trying to determine whether credit card associations such as MasterCard collude to set the amount merchants are charged for accepting the cards as payment.