Global Payments Lawsuit: Settlements, CFPB Case, and Data Breach

Global Payments Inc. has faced a series of lawsuits over the past decade, and the most recent Global Payments lawsuit of note is a securities fraud class action that settled for $3.6 million in December 2024 over allegations tied to its Active Network subsidiary. Other significant matters include an $84 million overbilling settlement by subsidiary Central Payment, a $15 million Worldpay overcharging settlement, a reversed $135.2 million jury verdict in a contract dispute with Frontline Processing, a pending Illinois biometric privacy suit, and roughly $94 million in costs from a 2012 data breach.

The $3.6 Million Securities Class Action Settlement

Investors filed Shafer, et al. v. Global Payments Inc., et al. on February 8, 2023, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia (Case No. 1:23-cv-00577-LMM).¹ The complaint alleged that Global Payments and several executives made materially false and misleading statements between October 31, 2019, and October 18, 2022, about the practices, legal compliance, and financial performance of Active Network, a subsidiary Global Payments bought in 2017 for roughly $1.2 billion.²

Active Network ran a registration platform for community events and sports leagues. Investors alleged the company used deceptive tactics to enroll consumers in a paid discount club called “Active Advantage” without clear consent, and that Global Payments had known about the conduct since at least July 2011 without disclosing it or stopping it. That, the plaintiffs argued, meant a portion of reported revenue was unsustainable and public statements about the business were misleading, in violation of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.³

The alleged truth came out on October 18, 2022, when the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced a complaint against Active Network. Global Payments stock fell $1.33 that day, closing at $113.67.⁴

The parties agreed to resolve the case for $3.6 million in cash.⁵ The court granted preliminary approval on August 26, 2024, and final approval on December 13, 2024.² The class covered everyone who purchased Global Payments common stock during the October 31, 2019 to October 18, 2022 class period. The claim deadline was January 11, 2025, and settlement checks were mailed to authorized claimants on May 27, 2026.⁶ If you did not file a timely claim, you are not eligible to receive a distribution from this settlement.

The CFPB Case Against Active Network

The regulator’s case against Active Network was the trigger for the investor suit and is worth understanding on its own. In October 2022, the CFPB filed an amended complaint against Active Network, LLC in the Eastern District of Texas (Case No. 4:22-cv-00898-ALM).⁷ The agency alleged that Active inserted an offer page with an ambiguous “Accept” button into its event registration flow, leading many consumers to believe the click was required to finish registering. What they actually got was a free trial that converted to a paid $89.95 annual membership unless canceled within 30 days.

The CFPB said Active had collected over $300 million in fees from about three million consumers since July 2011, while those consumers redeemed only about $8.4 million in benefits. In 2019, 72% of consumers who canceled said they had not known they were enrolled.⁷

A federal judge denied Active Network’s motion to dismiss in October 2024.⁸ The parties then filed a joint stipulation of voluntary dismissal on April 30, 2025, and the court administratively closed the case on May 5, 2025. No consent order, monetary penalty, or injunctive relief was publicly imposed.⁹

The $84 Million Central Payment Overbilling Settlement

Central Payment Co., a California-based card processing and ATM services subsidiary, agreed to a settlement valued at up to $84 million in a class action brought by merchants. The suit alleged that Central Payment raised contractual credit card discount rates above agreed amounts, shifted transactions from lower-cost to higher-cost rate tiers, and improperly assessed a fee called the “TSSNF.”¹⁰ The class covered current and former Central Payment customers assessed the TSSNF fee between January 1, 2010, and October 31, 2020. The deal was reached shortly before trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska.¹¹

The $15 Million Worldpay Settlement

Small-business customers of Worldpay US Inc. alleged the company breached their contracts by overcharging for payment processing. In December 2019, the parties asked a federal judge in the Northern District of Georgia to approve a $15 million settlement.¹² Global Payments acquired Worldpay in January 2026, after that settlement.

The Frontline Processing Verdict, Reversed

Global Payments Direct, Inc. lost a jury verdict in a breach-of-contract case brought by Frontline Processing Corporation, an independent sales organization that resold Global Payments’ services. Frontline alleged that Global Payments withheld litigation-related fees from its sales fees after a CFPB action, locked it out of its vendor system, blocked it from moving merchants to competing processors, and disclosed the parties’ confidential agreement in federal court filings.¹³

A DeKalb County, Georgia jury awarded Frontline $135.2 million: roughly $24.3 million in direct damages, $109.8 million in consequential damages, and about $1.1 million in attorney fees. On June 30, 2021, the Georgia Court of Appeals reversed, finding that the trial court should have granted Global Payments a directed verdict on the non-solicitation and confidentiality claims. Because the jury had not separated damages by claim, the appellate court ordered a new trial.¹³ The Georgia Supreme Court declined review in January 2022, returning the case for retrial.¹⁴

The Xenial Biometric Privacy Class Action

On April 2, 2024, a proposed class action was filed in federal court alleging that Xenial, Inc. and its parent Global Payments violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act. In Mendenhall v. Xenial, Inc. et al. (Case No. 1:24-cv-02640), the named plaintiff, a former Burger King worker in Illinois, alleged that employees at restaurants using Xenial’s point-of-sale terminals were required to scan their fingerprints to clock in and out or input food orders, and that the companies collected and stored those fingerprints without informed consent, required notice, or published retention and destruction guidelines.¹⁵ The case was in its early stages as of the most recent available information.

The 2012 Data Breach and Its Costs

Global Payments discovered a major payment card data breach in early 2012. The primary window of unauthorized access ran from January 21 through February 25, 2012, though Visa later indicated the breach may have started as early as June 2011.¹⁶ The company initially estimated up to 1.5 million card numbers were compromised, though some reports suggested a higher figure.¹⁷

By January 2013, Global Payments reported total breach-related costs of $93.9 million. That figure included $60 million in professional fees, investigation, remediation, and consumer credit monitoring, plus $35.9 million in estimated fraud losses, fines, and card network charges, partially offset by $2 million in insurance recoveries. The company said it had reached resolutions with certain card networks but not all of them. Visa temporarily removed Global Payments from its list of data-security-compliant providers.¹⁶

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General Counsel News. Central Payment Co Improper Fees $84M Class Action Settlement
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Law360. Payments Biz to Pay Up to $84M to Settle Overbilling Suit
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Law360. Worldpay Agrees to $15M Settlement With Small Businesses
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FindLaw. Global Payments Direct Inc v Frontline Processing Corporation
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Law360. Ga High Court Tees Up New Trial in Pay Processing Row
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ClassAction.org. Xenials Point of Sale Platform Unlawfully Collects Restaurant Employees Fingerprint Scans Class Action Says
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BankInfoSecurity. Global Payments Breach Tab $94 Million
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Christian Science Monitor. Global Payments Credit Card Data Breach How Big Is the Theft