Amex CEO: More Card ‘Refreshes’ (& Fee Hikes) Are Coming Soon

[Saleen099]

https://thriftytraveler.com/news/credit-card/amex-ceo-more-fee-hikes/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0BMQABHb5D3...

[CreditCuriosity]

Yes.  Annoying to me personally.  I will be cancelling my two Amex Delta cards one Platinum business that is on the 2nd year meaning paid two annual fees and the gold I will cancel early and they can claw back that bonus if they want as I signed up for 99 AF, not the 150 af after first year.  Amex has no issues with raising AF's every few years and adds more coupons or the likes to each card it seems.  I likely will just keep the Amex Prime card and Business BCE and be done with them as tired of them raising their AF's for me personally where other issuers are a bit more spread out on doing so.

[swankytiger]

Waiting for my CS Plat AF to post so i can cancel, same with the gold.  Im keeping my Hilton Aspire for now.

[FlaDude]

Two of my cards recently AF increases and I plan on closing or downgrading before the next AF hits, Delta Gold and Amex Surpass.

[CYBERSAM]

As a none Amex Delta card holder, this is a good news!

I have only BCP Amex and don't see any value for other personal cards that they offer! So revamping their lineup to be more competitive is great.

Always liked AMEX and their services, so hopefully they "revamp" their obsolete cards such as 1.5% rewards etc...

[CorpCrMgr1]

@Saleen099  thank you for sharing. 

[keekers]

Thanks for sharing.

[Aim_High]

“We look at what our customers really want and make sure that we’re adding value that makes sense to them,” he said.

Surely, their travel-loving Platinum cardholders were clamoring for a $13 monthly credit for Walmart+ and a $300-a-year, drop-in-the-bucket credit toward a $3,000-plus Equinox gym membership. What's next?

The problem for fed-up cardholders is that no matter how time-consuming it might be to track and use all the credits and benefits on your Amex cards, these tactics work like a charm for the bank's bottom line. Amex just keeps making more and more money, including pulling in 15% more in annual fees in the first quarter of 2024 compared to last year – largely powered by its increasingly expensive premium travel cards.

AMEX doesn't care what cardholders "really want."  It's all about the cumbersome coupon-book credits padding the bottom line.  And the frequent changes referenced (every three years or so) adds to the breakage since it's more difficult for consumers to keep track of the credits on each card as they evolve.   Unfortunately, the constant changes make it very difficult for anyone to accurately predict the long-term viability of any of their AF cards, and requires existing cardholders to regularly question whether the cards are beneficial.   My only AMEX cards with an AF right now are hotel cards with Marriott and Hilton which have more simple (and useful to me) credits like free hotel nights, hotel elite status perks, and the $300 restaurant credit on the Brilliant ($25 monthly) which is relatively painless as AMEX goes since it's credited by MCC and not the specific merchant.  For now, I'll keep my current cards but if they make extensive changes I may have to revisit those cards.  I won't voluntarily give up my AMEX TCL but I'd be willing to shift it to their no-AF cards, even if they were relatively useless except for the credit limits. 

Thanks @Saleen099.

[CreditCuriosity]

You also know they are getting these credit or coupons in bulk at a huge discount and many of them are never used so AMEX is making off like a bandit.  I think it is going to come around and nip them in their behind on the more expensive AF cards whether personal or business.  As mentioned this seems to be happening changes in AF every few years and the perks change as well making it near impossible to see if a card is viable long term.  Especially if terms being AF change before your first year where RAT can get involved as they say you are gaming the system, but AMEX is the one that made the change of AF midway through first year which makes the card a lot more appetizing.  Be an interesting fight I might be going against on their RAT team, but imho they have no ground to stand on as they changed the terms.

[CreditCuriosity]

You also know they are getting these credit or coupons in bulk at a huge discount and many of them are never used so AMEX is making off like a bandit.  I think it is going to come around and nip them in their behind on the more expensive AF cards whether personal or business.  As mentioned this seems to be happening changes in AF every few years and the perks change as well making it near impossible to see if a card is viable long term.  Especially if terms being AF change before your first year where RAT can get involved as they say you are gaming the system, but AMEX is the one that made the change of AF midway through first year.  Be an interesting fight I might be going against on their RAT team, but imho they have no ground to stand on as they changed the terms with two or three month notice?  Still a lot of people will be caught up in this.  Remind me of how MC d's and other fast food chains know and publicly admit how they are overcharging and seeing how far they can push the boundaries before they hit the line where people will not pay for convenience aka 15-20$ big mac combo meal or whatever when you can have a way better dining experience both in atmosphere and quality at a restaurant for the same price or very close.