The UK Supreme Court dismisses the appeal of a financial services company, by upholding the decision of the Court of Appeal which in turn has a significant impact on future national collective proceedings (Merricks / Mastercard)

In a landmark judgment (and in unusual circumstances), the UK Supreme Court has held that the ongoing Merricks v Mastercard case should be referred back to the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). Not only is this a step towards Merricks' claim that interchange fees were "an invisible tax on UK consumers" being heard in court, but – more importantly – it is also likely to have a significant impact on UK "collective proceedings" for years to come. Background The roots of the case go back to 2007, when the European Commission found that Mastercard's multi-lateral interchange fees were anti-competitive. Interchange fees are the fees paid by businesses when transactions are made using a Mastercard, which ultimately, it was held, resulted in higher prices being charged to consumers. This