Capital One and Discover merger ‘dangerous’, consumer groups tell Fed

Coalition of advocacy groups warn that deal would ‘further concentrate risk’ in the financial system and ‘must be stopped’

Regulators have been urged to block Capital One’s $35bn takeover of Discover by campaigners who say the blockbuster deal is “dangerous, illegal, and must be stopped”.

Urging the Federal Reserve and Department of Justice to intervene, a coalition of more than a dozen advocacy groups cautioned that combining two of the largest credit card companies in the US would damage competition and “further concentrate risk” in the financial system.