Capital One’s Discover acquisition gains approval from Justice Department

GlobalData

Mon, Apr 7, 2025, 4:22 AM 1 min read

Capital One Financial is progressing with its projected acquisition of Discover Financial Services, arsenic the Justice Department has indicated it does not foresee important contention issues that would impede the merger.

This follows the announcement of the $35bn woody successful February 2024, which initially raised concerns astir its interaction connected consumers, peculiarly those without recognition histories.

The Justice Department had antecedently expressed concerns astir the merger during the Biden administration, but its probe continued erstwhile President Trump took office, reported the New York Times.

Recently, the section informed the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency that it has completed its reappraisal and recovered nary grounds to artifact the merger, according to anonymous sources.

While the Justice Department cannot o.k. banking mergers, it tin instrumentality ineligible enactment to obstruct them.

The Federal Reserve and the Comptroller inactive person the authorization to artifact the merger, but the caller appraisal is significant, arsenic analysts expected the Justice Department to rise objections.

Notably, national banking agencies person not formally rejected a slope merger exertion since 2003.

During the second portion of the Biden administration, the Justice Department introduced stricter guidelines for evaluating banking mergers, the archetypal update since 2008.

Capital One, with assets of $479bn, is claimed to beryllium the ninth-largest slope successful the US.

The acquisition of Discover would grow its web to 305 cardinal cardholders, complementing its existing lawsuit basal of implicit 100 million.

Shareholders person endorsed the all-stock transaction, with expectations to finalize the woody aboriginal this year, pending regulatory approval.

"Capital One’s Discover acquisition gains support from Justice Department" was primitively created and published by Retail Banker International, a GlobalData owned brand.