US payment processor Heartland Payment Systems (HPS) has reached a settlement agreement with diversified global financial services company American Express in connection to the 2008 criminal breach of Heartland's payment system environment.

Under the agreement, Heartland is set to pay American Express USD 3.6 million, thus resolving all intrusion-related issues between the two parties. The settlement marks Heartland’s first agreement with a card brand related to the intrusion.

In 2009, Heartland announced that its processing system had been the victim of a security breach, which is believed to have affected around 100 million cards from more than 650 financial services companies.