American Express Company is a premium payments and financial services company built around a closed-loop card network. In FY2025, American Express reported $72.2 billion in total revenues net of interest expense, $10.8 billion in net income, and approximately 76,800 employees.
American Express Key Facts
- Founded in 1850 by Henry Wells, William G. Fargo, and John Warren Butterfield.
- Headquarters: New York, New York.
- CEO: Stephen J. Squeri.
- NYSE ticker: AXP.
- FY2025 revenue: $72.2 billion in total revenues net of interest expense.
- FY2025 net income: $10.8 billion.
- FY2025 employees: approximately 76,800.
How American Express Makes Money
American Express earns money from merchant discount revenue, card fees, net interest income, travel and lifestyle services, and other card-member spending economics. Its closed-loop model means it has relationships with card members and merchants, unlike open-loop payment networks that mostly route transactions between banks.
The model depends on premium card-member acquisition, merchant acceptance, credit underwriting, and rewards economics. The company can monetize high-spending customers through annual fees and merchant acceptance while using transaction data to refine offers, risk controls, and loyalty programs.
FY2025 Financial Snapshot
For FY2025, American Express reported $72.2 billion in total revenues net of interest expense and $10.8 billion in net income. Those figures make the financials page the best place to compare American Express with Visa, Mastercard, JPMorgan Chase, and other payments or card-issuing peers.
Why the History Matters
American Express began as an express freight company before expanding into money orders, traveler's cheques, charge cards, and modern premium payments. The recurring thread is trust: the brand repeatedly moved into businesses where customers needed secure movement of money, documents, or purchasing power.
Current Strategic Risks
The main risks are credit quality, reward-cost inflation, merchant acceptance economics, regulation of card fees, and competition from banks, fintechs, and digital wallets. American Express remains differentiated by its premium customer base and closed-loop network, but that differentiation requires continued investment in benefits and acceptance.
