Dive Brief:
- Amazon has selected U.S. Bank and Mastercard’s network for two new credit cards targeting small businesses, ditching American Express after an eight-year partnership, the retail behemoth said Tuesday in a press release.
- U.S. Bank will issue one new business card tied to the online retailer’s Prime membership program, which gives members of the Amazon program 5% back on Amazon purchases; and another business card, which offers 3% back to those without a Prime membership.
- Amazon said that it expects to transition the small-business cards from Amex to U.S. Bank on Aug. 14. Cardholders’ existing credit limits and interest rates won’t change as part of the transition, Amazon said.
Dive Insight:
“Small businesses told us they wanted more ways to earn rewards wherever they shop and better tools to manage cash flow,” Tai Koottatep, Amazon’s director and general manager of worldwide B2B payments and lending, said in the press release. “We partnered with U.S. Bank and Mastercard to build a card program that delivers exactly that.”
Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank has about 1.4 million small-business clients, according to the press release.
Neither of the new Amazon cards will carry an annual fee. The changes do not affect Amazon credit cards for consumers.
A spokesperson for New York-based Amex did not immediately respond to an email Tuesday seeking comment on Amazon’s switch of issuers and network.
The new Amazon relationship will present U.S. Bank the opportunity to cross-sell other services to millions of potential new customers.
“We are excited to partner with Amazon and Mastercard to empower small businesses with meaningful rewards and easy-to-use tools to manage spending, and, in the near future offering these small businesses more value with additional U.S. Bank services,” Courtney Kelso, U.S. Bank senior executive vice president of payments, said in the press release.
Amazon and American Express announced their partnership for a small-business card in June 2018.
“While our existing co-brand relationship with Amazon is changing, Amazon remains an important partner, and we continue to work together to provide valuable offerings to our customers,” Amex spokesperson Julie Townsend said Tuesday in an email.
