Capital One to buy Discover for $35B
The deal, if cleared by regulators, would create the biggest credit card lender in the country


What happened?
Capital One said Monday it would buy rival credit card issuer Discover Financial Services for $35.3 billion in stock. The deal would create the biggest credit card lender in the country, The Washington Post said, citing Bloomberg Intelligence.
Who said what?
"Our acquisition of Discover is a singular opportunity to bring together two very successful companies with complementary capabilities and franchises, and to build a payments network that can compete with the largest payments networks and payments companies,” Capital One founder and CEO Richard Fairbank said.
The commentary
"A space that is already dominated by a relatively small number of megaplayers is about to get a little smaller," said LendingTree analyst Matt Schulz. For consumers, "it's far from clear that bigger means better," Felix Salmon said at Axios. It is "very difficult to imagine" federal regulators allowing the deal to go through, "given the requirement that mergers benefit the public as well as insiders," said Jesse Van Tol, head of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What next?
The deal, if cleared by regulators, is expected to close in late 2024 or early 2025.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
'Wrench attacks' are targeting wealthy crypto moguls
The Explainer The attacks are named for physical coercion that can be used to gain crypto passwords
-
Trump is trying to jump-start US manufacturing. Is it worth it?
Today's Big Question The jobs are good. The workers may not be there.
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
The end of WeightWatchers?
Talking Point The diet brand has filed for bankruptcy in the US as it struggles to survive in era of weight-loss jabs
-
Visa wants to let AI make credit card purchases for you
The Explainer The program will allow you to set a budget and let AI learn from your shopping preferences
-
A newly created gasoline giant in the Americas could change the industry landscape
The Explainer Sunoco and Parkland are two of the biggest fuel suppliers in the US and Canada, respectively
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement