Last Wednesday (13/01), The University of Cambridge filed a competition suit against Mastercard, the American multinational financial services corporation, in the High Court of Justice of England and Wales.

The suit follows a 2020 judgement, which ruled that Mastercard and Visa’s mandated interchange fees broke anti-competition law. The UK Supreme court subsequently heard and denied an appeal from Mastercard, upholding the lower court’s ruling.

In August 2021, Sainsbury’s Supermarkets reached a settlement with Mastercard. Sarah Houghton, a Mishcon de Reya lawyer advising the supermarket chain told Bloomberg News at the time that it was “the first substantial award in a competition damages claim in the UK, and [they] believe in Europe”.

The University is being represented by British international commercial law firm Hill Dickinson LLP in this case, and Mastercard by the firm Jones Day. The nature of the competition suit is currently not public knowledge.

Varsity has contacted the University of Cambridge, Mastercard, Hill Dickinson LLP and Jones Day for comment.