On January 13, 2020, Visa announced that it was planning to purchase Plaid in a $5.3 billion deal -which could have been one of the largest to-date in the fintech industry - but this year things took a swing.
Visa's efforts ended after the Department of Justice pointed out that the company will eliminate the competition if it completes the deal, given that Plaid's software is used by major apps such as Venmo, Robinhood, and SoFi, to connect the apps with customers' bank account data.
The Department of Justice stated that the deal's termination is "a victory for American consumers and small businesses."
However, Visa and Plaid were quick to dismiss the allegations, saying that "we just believe that the lawsuit is wrong on the basis of facts and the basis of law."
Following the news, Visa stock price lost 1.89%.
Sources: fortune.com, cnbc.com
