LONDON, June 7 (Reuters) - Global payments processors

Visa and Mastercard ( MA ) must face a new set of lawsuits

over fees charged to retailers, after a London tribunal ruled on

Friday that collective cases brought on behalf of merchants can

proceed.

The two firms already face a long list of lawsuits in London

over multilateral interchange fees, which retailers pay when

consumers use a card to shop.

Visa and Mastercard ( MA ) are each being sued by hundreds of

claimants at London's Competition Appeal Tribunal, which is

managing the various cases together.

Special purpose vehicle Commercial and Interregional Card

Claims brought another set of lawsuits against Visa and

Mastercard ( MA ) in 2022, seeking damages on behalf of merchants who

were allegedly overcharged.

The tribunal initially refused to certify its cases under

the United Kingdom's collective proceedings regime, which is

similar to class actions in the United States.

However, the tribunal ruled on Friday that the cases would

be certified, subject to any representations by other parties

who might have an interest in the cases.