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AMEX losing high net worth customers

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IWOL
Established Contributor

AMEX losing high net worth customers

Thought this was an intersting article about AMEX losing the higher end customers.

 

“I charge a lot of money on my credit card,” said Tilson, 48, who manages more than $83 million at Kase Capital Management in New York. He said the Barclaycard Arrival Plus World MasterCard gives him more cash perks while rewarding him for the money he spends on travel. “The difference between getting 1 percent and 2 percent cash back is thousands of dollars and for that amount of money, Barclaycard has a better offer,” he said.

 

Not sure if this a quote form a legit customer of Barclays but its hard to imagine someone that spends millions a year on their CC using the Arrival.

 

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-12/amex-grip-on-wealthy-consumers-seen-slipping-as-ri...

 


Message 1 of 11
10 REPLIES 10
SomeGuyOnTheWeb
Regular Contributor

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers

The title doesn't really support the article.

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Message 2 of 11
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers

People comparing the Amex Plat to rewards cards are just silly. You have the Plat (or similar cards) for perks like upgrades and lounge access. You use other cards for rewards. Amex has a line of rewards cards for specific spends (PRG for airfare, EDP for gas/groceries, etc) that outperform cards like the Arrival+ for specific spend areas. Their infographic on the various cards is semi misleading as well as it confuses sign-on bonuses and yearly credits by compiling them on the same line. 

 

Is Amex losing its market share among the affluent? Most definitely. Banks like Chase were not competing in this area till like 10-20 years ago. Since the 90s, Amex is facing a lot more competition. But that is not necessarily a bad thing since the CC market has expanded as well. I don't know enough to make a definitive statement about Amex's position, but I do know enough to call BS on anyone comparing the Arrival+ to the Amex Plat for rewards. 

Message 3 of 11
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers


@SomeGuyOnTheWeb wrote:

The title doesn't really support the article.


I like the pic they used.

 

Message 4 of 11
IWOL
Established Contributor

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers


@Anonymous wrote:

People comparing the Amex Plat to rewards cards are just silly. You have the Plat (or similar cards) for perks like upgrades and lounge access. You use other cards for rewards. Amex has a line of rewards cards for specific spends (PRG for airfare, EDP for gas/groceries, etc) that outperform cards like the Arrival+ for specific spend areas. Their infographic on the various cards is semi misleading as well as it confuses sign-on bonuses and yearly credits by compiling them on the same line. 

 

Is Amex losing its market share among the affluent? Most definitely. Banks like Chase were not competing in this area till like 10-20 years ago. Since the 90s, Amex is facing a lot more competition. But that is not necessarily a bad thing since the CC market has expanded as well. I don't know enough to make a definitive statement about Amex's position, but I do know enough to call BS on anyone comparing the Arrival+ to the Amex Plat for rewards. 


I agree with everything you say. I guess the author assumes his audience is not very informed on rewards or how they actually work. I thought the quote from the hedge fund manager was funny becuase it totally ignores any other benefit of Amex cards and also pins the value of the rewards at 1 cent which we know is not actually the case when using the points to transfer partners.


Message 5 of 11
pipeguy
Senior Contributor

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers

Good read, made my day Smiley Wink

Message 6 of 11
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers

hilarious.

Message 7 of 11
Kostya1992
Established Contributor

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers

This will be a temporary "dent" for AMEX. As someone mentioned, AMEX has been around for way longer than Costco, their customer support is unmatched. We will all get over it. There's still billions of places that accept AMEX.

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Message 8 of 11
longtimelurker
Epic Contributor

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers


@Kostya1992 wrote:

This will be a temporary "dent" for AMEX. As someone mentioned, AMEX has been around for way longer than Costco, their customer support is unmatched. We will all get over it. There's still billions of places that accept AMEX.


The longevity argument doesn't really make sense.   Lots of hugely successful businesses went under (or became marginal) when various factors (business landscape and/or competition) changed.  A recent article causing waves suggested the same about Google (too focussed on the ads business, and saying in general it appears that market leaders are often unable to adapt to the next big thing)

 

And there are millions of places that take Amex, not billions.   Fewer in the US than take Discover.

Message 9 of 11
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AMEX losing high net worth customers

Interesting. 

Message 10 of 11
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