The main European subsidiary of American Express earns 17% more | comp

American Express Europe, the main European subsidiary of the Spain-based credit card and payment services giant, made a profit of 22.9 million euros in 2021, up 17.4% from the 19.5 million obtained in the previous year.

In terms of billing, American Express Europe in the whole of last year had almost the same turnover as the previous year (526.9 million), although the details of the company in its accounts, recently filed with the Commercial Register, which in 2021 saw an economic recovery after 2020, were affected Significant decrease in sales activity associated with the use of customer cards due to movement restrictions due to Covid-19.

In terms of tax payments, the company more than doubled its contribution to the treasury, paying 11.8 million euros against 4.7 million the previous year.

American Express Europe is the corporate hub in Spain and is the nerve center of American Express’s business in Europe. The company, headquartered in Spain, controls the business of issuing personal and corporate cards for most countries in the region.

As stated in the recent Non-Financial Information Statement, in 2018, as a result of potential regulatory changes due to Brexit that would prevent the use of passport rights in the rest of European countries, American Express decided to move all of its business from the continent. Europe to its Spanish subsidiary American Express Europe, excluding card issuance activity in Italy, Belgium and France. In this way, the company itself realizes that this company is “the main issuing entity in continental Europe”.

The Bank of Spain oversees the entity and is authorized to operate in the country under the passport system, either through branches or across the UK border. From Spain the company provides its services to 37 countries. It also has a presence in 29 other European countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Sweden.

Specifically, American Express Europe has reported in recent weeks that at the end of September it will absorb the Belgian subsidiaries Alpha Card and Alpha Card Merchant Services through a cross-border double merger, continuing its strategy of centralizing all European payment services in Spanish. institutions.

The agreement states that Alpha Card and Alpha Card Merchant Services will be dissolved and their assets and liabilities transferred collectively and through American Express’ overall succession, including agreements, suppliers and employees.

Alpha Card was created as a joint venture between American Express and BNP Paribas Fortis. It issues American Express payment cards in Belgium and Luxembourg, while its subsidiary Alpha Card Merchant Services provides access to services in Belgium.