McLEAN, Va.—Capital One’s $35-billion acquisition of Discover Financial Services is now complete, and some of the changes and new market competition being envisioned by analysts are going to demand the attention of every credit union that offers a debit or credit card. 

Capital One’s primary goal in making its move was to acquire the Discover card network. And that will have implications for all issuers, a new report cautions.

“Adding a debit- and credit-card network can, in theory, supercharge Capital One’s banking and card businesses,” the Wall Street Journal reported. “It can also help with what Chief Executive Richard Fairbank has described as its ‘quest’ to go to the top end of the card market.

The report noted that on the banking side, the Discover network gives Capital One the ability to make more money from debit card payments.

“Federal laws cap what larger banks can earn via so-called interchange fees on debit cards,” the Journal explained. “However, the cap doesn’t apply when the card issuer and network are the same, as they can now be for Capital One.”

The report cited a note from analysts at JPMorgan Chase that estimated Capital One could potentially earn $1 billion in incremental interchange revenue from moving its debit cards over to Discover’s network. 

More Aggressive Competition

For credit unions, it could mean an even more aggressive competitive offer.

“That money could drop to the bottom line. Or, even more ambitiously, this revenue could be used to fund debit-card rewards to lure key customers, as well as their deposits,” suggested the Wall Street Journal in its analysis. “JPMorgan equity analysts in their note described cash-back debit as ‘a highly differentiated product.’

“On the credit side, there is also potential to keep expanding Capital One’s business,” the report continued. “The company has already made big inroads with heavy-spending travelers with its Venture X rewards card. That card, launched in 2021, carries a $395 fee.”

As the CU Daily has been regularly reporting, there is hyper competition at the top end of the premium card market. 

Perception of Brand

The Journal noted that in a 2025 survey of U.S. cardholders by analysts at Bank of America, 43% of respondents called Capital One a “premium” card brand—almost double the share in the same survey in 2023. That nearly caught it up with Chase, which was at 50%.

With Capital One having invested significantly in airport lounges, having upgraded its Capital One Travel portal, built up a shopping portal and recently acquired a digital luxury concierge, Velocity Black, “…in theory, having the merchant connections that a network brings, plus additional revenue and the ability to set its own fees, can help fund even more investment and deliver better rewards and deals,” the Journal reported.