ALEXANDRIA, VA - SIGMA, an association representing independent motor fuel marketers and chain retailers, is the latest group to support NACS and reject the proposed antitrust settlement with Visa and MasterCard that was announced on July 13.

"SIGMA does not support the proposed settlement of longstanding antitrust litigation between merchants and the credit card industry," noted a statement released by SIGMA.

"Although SIGMA has never been a party to the litigation, the potential settlement would impact and bind all retailers that accept Visa and MasterCard cards. Because the proposed settlement does not introduce competition and transparency into the broken credit card swipe fee market, SIGMA does not support adoption of the settlement agreement," the statement added.

On Friday, Target released a statement condemning the terms of the proposed settlement, noting, "Target believes the proposed interchange fee settlement is bad for both retailers and consumers."

Because the proposed settlement does not introduce competition and transparency into the broken credit card swipe fee market, the NACS Board of Directors, comprised of more than two dozen merchants, unanimously rejected the proposed settlement agreement. NACS was the first class plaintiff to reject the terms of the proposed agreement but it is expected that many of the other class plaintiffs will join NACS in the coming weeks.

"It€™s a bad deal and the growing backlash against the terms of the proposed settlement that we are hearing from retailers confirms that this is far from a done deal," said NACS Senior Vice President of Government Relations Lyle Beckwith.

If you want to share what you have done to communicate your opposition to the proposed settlement or share your comments, contact Lyle Beckwith.