Majority Leader Schumer Floor Remarks Demanding Transparency For Consumers In Capital One Discover Merger

Washington, D.C. –  Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today spoke on the Senate floor on his letter to Capitol One and Discover on their potential multi-billion dollar merger and called for the companies to share information on the merger with the American people.  Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

Earlier this week, I sent a letter to Capital One and Discover asking for more information about their plans for a multi-billion dollar merger.

If history has taught us anything, it’s that when big financial institutions get even bigger, it could have serious consequences for consumers and small businesses alike. Higher interest rates, bigger fees, diminished competition – these could all be at stake.

So, my letter asks some questions to both Capital One and Discover that the American people deserve to have answered before this merger goes forward.

We need to know about the market shares in this industry. We need to know about potential increases in fees. We need to know if any workers will be laid off. We need to know how consumers are being made aware of this planned merger.

Capital One and Discover are two of the largest credit card issuing institutions in America. If this merger continues as planned, the new company would likely become the largest credit card issuer in the United States of America, with over 400 million customers.

So, before these two companies merge, the American people deserve answers to these questions to be sure they won’t receive the short end of the stick.

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