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Capital One Is Buying Discover Financial

52 points by archb 3y ago

martinky24 3y ago
Is Buying* * Pending the feds allowing this to go through There has been enough antitrust scrutiny in recent years where I am very interested to see how far this goes. There's a very real chance the sale won't complete and 6 months from now nothing will have changed.
- Banditoz 3y ago
  If they didn't block the Actiblizz purchase I don't see why they'd block this one.
  - lannisterstark 3y ago
    JetBlue and Spirit are better comparison
- solardev 3y ago
  Can't they just stall until the election? If a Republican wins again, that's probably the end of antitrust enforcement until the next cycle.
  - mindslight 3y ago
    If the foreign owned New Republican Party wins the presidency, businesses providing accounts in USD won't be worth much anyway. (for reference I'm a libertarian, but let's call a spade a spade)
  - tacticalturtle 3y ago
    I don’t think the parties are significantly different in this regard anymore. There’s mistrust of large corporations on both sides. Recall that the Trump administration tried (and ultimately failed) to block the AT&T and Time Warner merger. And then there was the antitrust complaint against Google.
    - TMWNN 3y ago
      >Recall that the Trump administration tried (and ultimately failed) to block the AT&T and Time Warner merger. Talk about a Pyrrhic victory. AT&T really, really wishes it had lost that one.
      - solardev 3y ago
        What do you mean?
alberth 3y ago
This is significant. It’s one of the largest US Open-Loop Issuers, buying their own network (Closed Loop). Cap1 will now be able to cut out Visa/Mastercard. Cap1 will now be like Amex.
- finfrastrcuture 3y ago
  totally agree. but an amex focused on the non-affluent demographic. I think this actually increases competition in an area the FTC/CFPB cares about!
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- bediger4000 3y ago
  Like Amex - expensive, difficult to work with because they define their own goofy standards, and loathed by merchants and customers alike?
  - lannisterstark 3y ago
    Loathed? Lol. American Express is one of my favorite actual providers.
  - ulfw 3y ago
    Worse. At least Amex is widely accepted worldwide (not as widely as Visa/MC). Discover? Ha. Tough luck.
  - LeafItAlone 3y ago
    What do customers dislike about Amex? I’ve typically seen them referred to positively compared to other processors.
    - jjeaff 3y ago
      I'm not a fan. They like to play the game of "unlimited credit limit". Until you spend more than your secret credit limit that is, in fact, not unlimited. this was years ago, but I was unable to get them to tell me what the secret limit was until I tried to make a large purchase and they blocked it. then we had to play a stupid game of hypotheticals. If I were to attempt to make a single purchase of $75k next week, would it go through? What about $100k?
_mlbt 3y ago
Capital One is also rumored to be one of the top contenders to replace Goldman Sachs as the bank behind the Apple Card. I wonder if this is related to that.
- gumby 3y ago
  I doubt Apple Card would change to being Discover rather than Mastercard since Discover is accepted by, what, two retailers? I would prefer if Apple switched to Visa since my other visa cards gradually got converted to the less useful Mastercard (supported in the USA, but fewer other places).
  - finfrastrcuture 3y ago
    Mastercard actually has higher coverage internationally.[0] [0] https://wallethub.com/answers/cc/is-visa-or-mastercard-better-for-international-travel-2140831950/ https://wallethub.com/answers/cc/is-visa-or-mastercard-bette...
  - cbhl 3y ago
    While switching to Discover would make Apple Card less useful as a travel credit card and budgeting tool, it would still be useful as a "store credit card" (monthly installments for buying a new iPhone). And it wouldn't be the first time Apple has integrated with Discover -- for example Apple Cash in Wallet used to use Discover prior to 2022 or so.
    - ulfw 3y ago
      In the US yes. Not anywhere else. I've been buying Apple goods in HK with my Apple card for years.
  - acdha 3y ago
    Discover is riskier internationally but in the US it’s really not uncommon - like Amex you might not want it to be your only option but that backup Visa won’t get much use.
  - haswell 3y ago
Projectiboga 3y ago
For research and education users. https://archive.is/tW0Ih https://archive.is/tW0Ih
toomuchtodo 3y ago
Non paywall alternative: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/19/capital-one-acquiring-discover-financial-services-report-says.html https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/19/capital-one-acquiring-discov...
al_borland 3y ago
If this leads to CapitalOne switching my cards to Discover, I’ll be leaving CapitalOne. I don’t want to have to question if places I’m going will accept my card, or have to carry a backup Visa card. I also can’t think about the Discover card without hearing Peter Griffin[1] in the back of my head. [1] https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EgZL27H_yxk https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EgZL27H_yxk
- finfrastrcuture 3y ago
  I doubt the existing products will change anytime soon given existing contracts, brand promises, etc. The impact will likely only be new products.
- ars 3y ago
  In the US Discover is accepted in 99% of places: https://www.discover.com/credit-cards/card-smarts/discover-cards-acceptance/ https://www.discover.com/credit-cards/card-smarts/discover-c... So your worry is overblown unless you travel internationally frequently.
  - al_borland 3y ago
    I first signed up with them specifically to get a card for international travel. If that becomes less reliable, or I have to check a website before I go anywhere, the value proposition drops a lot. I looked at their international site (linked from the one you posted). It says the place I’m going in a month has high acceptance, but other countries right next door do not (within the EU). There are also a lot of notes to just try it and see if it works. That implies I should have a backup and I won’t be able to tell before trying to buy something based on stickers at the register. If that’s the case, I’d rather make the backup my main card, so I don’t need to do that dance and get rejected. In India it seemed like Mastercard was the most widely accepted, so even Visa wasn’t everywhere I want to be. But I think Visa, with a Mastercard backup, is probably the best bet for most of the world. Discover feels unnecessary. I’m not looking to have a ton of credit cards.
    - instagib 3y ago

52 points by archb 3y ago

Is Buying* * Pending the feds allowing this to go through There has been enough antitrust scrutiny in recent years where I am very interested to see how far this goes. There's a very real chance the sale won't complete and 6 months from now nothing will have changed.

Banditoz 3y ago
If they didn't block the Actiblizz purchase I don't see why they'd block this one.
- lannisterstark 3y ago
  JetBlue and Spirit are better comparison
solardev 3y ago
Can't they just stall until the election? If a Republican wins again, that's probably the end of antitrust enforcement until the next cycle.
- mindslight 3y ago
  If the foreign owned New Republican Party wins the presidency, businesses providing accounts in USD won't be worth much anyway. (for reference I'm a libertarian, but let's call a spade a spade)
- tacticalturtle 3y ago
  I don’t think the parties are significantly different in this regard anymore. There’s mistrust of large corporations on both sides. Recall that the Trump administration tried (and ultimately failed) to block the AT&T and Time Warner merger. And then there was the antitrust complaint against Google.
  - TMWNN 3y ago
    >Recall that the Trump administration tried (and ultimately failed) to block the AT&T and Time Warner merger. Talk about a Pyrrhic victory. AT&T really, really wishes it had lost that one.
    - solardev 3y ago
      What do you mean?

alberth 3y ago

This is significant. It’s one of the largest US Open-Loop Issuers, buying their own network (Closed Loop). Cap1 will now be able to cut out Visa/Mastercard. Cap1 will now be like Amex.

finfrastrcuture 3y ago
totally agree. but an amex focused on the non-affluent demographic. I think this actually increases competition in an area the FTC/CFPB cares about!
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
bediger4000 3y ago
Like Amex - expensive, difficult to work with because they define their own goofy standards, and loathed by merchants and customers alike?
- lannisterstark 3y ago
  Loathed? Lol. American Express is one of my favorite actual providers.
- ulfw 3y ago
  Worse. At least Amex is widely accepted worldwide (not as widely as Visa/MC). Discover? Ha. Tough luck.
- LeafItAlone 3y ago
  What do customers dislike about Amex? I’ve typically seen them referred to positively compared to other processors.
  - jjeaff 3y ago
    I'm not a fan. They like to play the game of "unlimited credit limit". Until you spend more than your secret credit limit that is, in fact, not unlimited. this was years ago, but I was unable to get them to tell me what the secret limit was until I tried to make a large purchase and they blocked it. then we had to play a stupid game of hypotheticals. If I were to attempt to make a single purchase of $75k next week, would it go through? What about $100k?

_mlbt 3y ago

Capital One is also rumored to be one of the top contenders to replace Goldman Sachs as the bank behind the Apple Card. I wonder if this is related to that.

gumby 3y ago
I doubt Apple Card would change to being Discover rather than Mastercard since Discover is accepted by, what, two retailers? I would prefer if Apple switched to Visa since my other visa cards gradually got converted to the less useful Mastercard (supported in the USA, but fewer other places).
- finfrastrcuture 3y ago
  Mastercard actually has higher coverage internationally.[0] [0] https://wallethub.com/answers/cc/is-visa-or-mastercard-better-for-international-travel-2140831950/ https://wallethub.com/answers/cc/is-visa-or-mastercard-bette...
- cbhl 3y ago
  While switching to Discover would make Apple Card less useful as a travel credit card and budgeting tool, it would still be useful as a "store credit card" (monthly installments for buying a new iPhone). And it wouldn't be the first time Apple has integrated with Discover -- for example Apple Cash in Wallet used to use Discover prior to 2022 or so.
  - ulfw 3y ago
    In the US yes. Not anywhere else. I've been buying Apple goods in HK with my Apple card for years.
- acdha 3y ago
  Discover is riskier internationally but in the US it’s really not uncommon - like Amex you might not want it to be your only option but that backup Visa won’t get much use.
- haswell 3y ago

Projectiboga 3y ago

For research and education users. https://archive.is/tW0Ih https://archive.is/tW0Ih

toomuchtodo 3y ago

Non paywall alternative: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/19/capital-one-acquiring-discover-financial-services-report-says.html https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/19/capital-one-acquiring-discov...

al_borland 3y ago

If this leads to CapitalOne switching my cards to Discover, I’ll be leaving CapitalOne. I don’t want to have to question if places I’m going will accept my card, or have to carry a backup Visa card. I also can’t think about the Discover card without hearing Peter Griffin[1] in the back of my head. [1] https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EgZL27H_yxk https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EgZL27H_yxk

finfrastrcuture 3y ago
I doubt the existing products will change anytime soon given existing contracts, brand promises, etc. The impact will likely only be new products.
ars 3y ago
In the US Discover is accepted in 99% of places: https://www.discover.com/credit-cards/card-smarts/discover-cards-acceptance/ https://www.discover.com/credit-cards/card-smarts/discover-c... So your worry is overblown unless you travel internationally frequently.
- al_borland 3y ago
  I first signed up with them specifically to get a card for international travel. If that becomes less reliable, or I have to check a website before I go anywhere, the value proposition drops a lot. I looked at their international site (linked from the one you posted). It says the place I’m going in a month has high acceptance, but other countries right next door do not (within the EU). There are also a lot of notes to just try it and see if it works. That implies I should have a backup and I won’t be able to tell before trying to buy something based on stickers at the register. If that’s the case, I’d rather make the backup my main card, so I don’t need to do that dance and get rejected. In India it seemed like Mastercard was the most widely accepted, so even Visa wasn’t everywhere I want to be. But I think Visa, with a Mastercard backup, is probably the best bet for most of the world. Discover feels unnecessary. I’m not looking to have a ton of credit cards.
  - instagib 3y ago