Bank One to Take Hit on Debit Cards

Bank One Corp. said Sunday that Visa USA Inc.’s recent $2-billion settlement of a debit-card lawsuit would cost the sixth-biggest U.S. bank $60 million a year in retail debit card revenue.

The Chicago-based bank, which made the disclosure in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, has nearly 5 million debit card users, company spokesman Tom Kelly said. Bank One also is the largest issuer of Visa credit cards in the world.

On April 30, Visa settled litigation by thousands of retailers, averting a trial over its debit cards and the fees it charged. MasterCard International Inc. also settled in the same case.

The deal will lower the fees the credit-card companies charge retailers for running debit-card transactions over their networks. That in turn will lower the fees banks that issue debit cards will get from these transactions, Kelly said.

Bank One saw its shares rise 40 cents to $36.93 Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.