Walmart Ends Credit Card Deal with Capital One Over Processing Delays

By Madz Dizon

May 25 2024, 19:03 PM EDT

Walmart Ends Credit Card Deal with Capital One Over Processing Delays — A Walmart Supercenter cart sits outside of the store on February 20, 2024, in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Walmart reported that quarterly revenue rose 6%, and that the company’s global e-commerce sales have also grown. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Walmart has decided to terminate its partnership with Capital One, which previously served as the sole issuer of Walmart's consumer credit cards.

The change was announced in a joint statement on Friday, May 24, by the companies.

Walmart Ends Partnership With Capital One

According to AP News, Walmart and Capital One have confirmed that cardholders can still use their Capital One Walmart Rewards cards, and these cards will continue to accumulate rewards unless customers receive notification of any alterations.

Capital One will continue to own and manage the credit card accounts. In 2019, Walmart, headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, formed a partnership with Capital One, following the termination of its previous credit card agreement with Synchrony Financial.

In 2023, Walmart filed a lawsuit against the McLean, Virginia-based company, expressing its desire to terminate the agreement due to delays in payment processing and card replacement by Capital One. In March, a federal judge ruled in favor of Walmart.

According to a recent government filing, Capital One has disclosed that there is an estimated $8.5 billion worth of loans in the current Walmart credit card portfolio.

What Will Happen to Walmart Credit Card Holders?

USA Today said there is no need for cardholders to take any action, as Capital One will continue to service the cards that were introduced in 2019.

Capital One has stated that they will proactively reach out to customers before making any changes to account features or functionality. "Customers can still shop with their existing products and make payments in the usual way."

In a recent ruling, a federal judge granted Walmart the ability to terminate their partnership with Capital One ahead of schedule. This decision was made due to Capital One's history of "repeated customer service failures."
Last week, Walmart announced a reduction in corporate positions and requested remote employees to transition back to working from the office.

In February, Capital One made a significant announcement regarding its acquisition of Discover Financial Services. The transaction, valued at $35.3 billion, was an all-stock deal.