On September 23, 2026, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White certified a class of qualifying card issuers in Affinity Credit Union v. Apple Inc., allowing them to pursue antitrust claims over Apple Pay fees together. The ruling concerns how the claims can proceed; the case’s underlying claims remain to be decided.
Who qualifies for the class?
The class covers U.S. entities that issued a payment card enabled for Apple Pay and paid Apple a fee for Apple Pay transactions on that card. It is a class of eligible card issuers, not Apple Pay users generally.
Affinity Credit Union, GreenState Credit Union and Consumers Co-op Credit Union filed the case in 2022.
What the plaintiffs allege about Apple Pay fees
The plaintiffs allege that Apple restricted rival mobile wallets’ access to the iPhone’s contactless-payment technology, giving Apple Pay an advantage in tap-to-pay on iPhones.
The fee rates reported in connection with the case are 0.15% of the value of an Apple Pay credit-card purchase and half a cent per debit transaction.
What the certification decides
Certification allows qualifying institutions to pursue their claims together. The ruling addressed that procedural step; whether Apple violated antitrust law and whether any damages are owed remain undecided.
White also rejected Apple’s effort to exclude plaintiffs’ damages expert Christopher Vellturo. The ruling allowed his testimony in the case; it did not set a damages amount.
