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AMERICAN EXPRESS Powerfully backing our customers, colleagues and communities
AMERICAN EXPRESS
Company Overview.
Description.
American Express (NYSE: AXP) is a global payments and premium lifestyle brand powered by technology. Founded in 1850 and headquartered in New York, Amex operates its own proprietary card network, a closed-loop model distinct from Visa or Mastercard, issuing credit and charge cards directly to consumers and businesses while also enabling partner banks to issue Amex-branded products. The company serves a broad range of customers from consumers to large corporations, managing relationships with merchants across 170+ million locations worldwide. Amex's brand is built on trust, security, service, and a rich history of delivering innovation, with key strategic priorities including premium product differentiation, digital transformation, and selective investment in blockchain and crypto infrastructure through Amex Digital Labs.
Beyond its role as a leading card issuer, Amex functions as a critical infrastructure provider within the global payments ecosystem. Its Amex Token Service (AETS) enables tokenization-as-a-service for issuing banks and acquiring merchants on its network, providing fraud prevention and secure digital credential management. Amex Digital Labs drives the company's blockchain strategy through partnerships with Fireblocks (Wallet-as-a-Service), thirdweb (Engine backend), and Coinbase (Base L2 integration), most notably powering Amex Passport, blockchain travel stamp NFTs minted on Coinbase's Base network. In June 2025, Amex became the network partner for the Coinbase One Card, its first crypto-native rewards card offering up to 4% Bitcoin back, issued by First Electronic Bank and co-branded with Cardless, signaling Amex's strategic positioning as BaaS infrastructure for the digital asset economy. The company also historically partnered with Ripple on FX International Payments for cross-border B2B settlements.
Key Infrastructure.
Additional Features.
Partner Cards.
General Questions.
American Express operates its own proprietary credit and charge card network, issuing cards directly to consumers and businesses while enabling partner banks to issue Amex-branded products. It processes payments across 170M+ merchant locations globally, provides tokenization services to issuers and merchants, and operates Amex Digital Labs exploring blockchain applications including the Coinbase One Card and Amex Passport travel NFTs on Base L2.
Consumers (affluent and premium segments), small and medium businesses, large corporations, and other financial institutions (issuing banks, acquirers, merchants). Crypto-native clients include Coinbase (via Coinbase One Card) and their broader cardholder base using Amex Passport.
Yes. Amex operates under state banking licenses and federal oversight from the OCC and Federal Reserve in the U.S., with additional regulatory approvals in the EU, UK, and other global jurisdictions. PCI DSS and EMVCo compliance are maintained.
Amex's blockchain activity centers on Ethereum L2 (Base via Coinbase) for Amex Passport travel stamps (ERC-721 NFTs), USDC stablecoin via the Coinbase One Card integration, and historical XRP Ledger usage for FXIP cross-border B2B payments with Santander (2017).
