2024-02-20 11:26:41 ET
Two of the nation's largest credit card lenders are merging, and some investors are worried about what the deal might mean for Mastercard (NYSE: MA) . Shares of the global payment network processor are down 3% as of 10:30 ET Tuesday.
On Monday, Capital One Financial (NYSE: COF) announced it had made a deal to acquire Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) for $35.3 billion in stock. The purchase is primarily about adding new customers for Capital One, but the company, which currently relies on Mastercard and other payment processing networks , also seems intrigued by Discover's competing network.
In the press release, Capital One noted that Discover has built a "rare and valuable" global payment network with 70 million merchant acceptance points in more than 200 countries. Today, Discover is the smallest of four major U.S.-based payment networks, but Capital One called the deal "a key foundation" in its "quest to build a global payments company."
For further details see:
Why Mastercard Stock Is Falling Today