business

Some Twin Cities merchants will get an unexpected holiday bonus this week as part of a $1.1 billion antitrust case payout announced Tuesday.

It's the final major outlay of a 2003 settlement in a case involving Visa and MasterCard debit cards, which was the largest antitrust settlement in U.S. history.

About $2.6 billion of the $3.4 billion settlement already has been disbursed, said Jeffrey Shinder, managing partner of the New York office of law firm Constantine Cannon, which prosecuted the case.

Local businesses involved in the class-action suit will begin receiving checks this week totaling an estimated $25 million to $30 million, Shinder said. Including previous payouts, merchants based in Minneapolis and St. Paul have gotten about $65 million, among the largest sums given to any metropolitan area.

Wal-Mart led the legal action, which was launched in 1996 because Visa and MasterCard were forcing merchants who wanted to carry the credit cards to also carry the high-priced debit cards. More than 634,000 businesses and three major retail associations joined the suit.

Shinder was unable to calculate the number of Twin Cities merchants that will get checks this week, but at least 30 are on the list. Payouts are based on the merchant's debit and credit card volume.

They include Target Corp., Room & Board, Cub Foods, Kowalski's and Bachman's. Small independent retailers such as Electric Fetus and the Bibelot will get a cut, as will Surdyk's and Haskell's liquor stores. Also on the list: General Mills, Medtronic, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, the University of Minnesota and the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis.

"A lot of merchants will be very happy to have extra money for Christmas," Shinder said. "Maybe it'll save a job or allow someone to get a bonus."

Jackie Crosby • 612-673-7335