Capital One merger could make Discover a rival to the largest credit cards in payments

Capital One’s planned merger with Discover, which has drawn early antitrust objections, could add competition in the payments space by making Discover a stronger rival to the biggest companies.

The deal, announced Monday, would cost Capital One $35 billion and result in the largest U.S. credit card company by loan volume. The deal would be a boost for Discover and could make it more of a player against larger rivals such as Visa, Mastercard, and American Express.