Amex takes share from Visa and MasterCard

Purchases on three-party cards (American Express and Diners) are on the rise, with Amex and Diners now claiming close to 20 per cent of credit and charge card spend.

According to the latest MWE Consulting payment card report, released yesterday, Amex and Visa have been steadily taking share away from Visa and MasterCard. Amex and Diners had a combined 19.3 per cent share of credit and charge card spend in April.

That share has climbed from 15.7 per cent in April 2007 and from 18.8 per cent a year ago.

MWE Consulting principal Mike Ebstein said: "Companion cards are clearly making their mark in the Australian credit card market."

The big four banks all offer their credit card customers a package that includes Visa or Master plus Amex. The two cards operate one credit card account, are covered by a single annual fee and points go into one awards account.

The rationale for companion card packages is that a Visa or MasterCard offers the consumer wide acceptance, while Amex sits outside interchange pricing regulation and can charge higher merchant fees and pass that on to consumers in the form of higher rewards.

Commonwealth Bank and Westpac offer three points per dollar spent on their Platinum Amex cards. Visa and MasterCard rewards deals are usually one point for each dollar spent.

The latest figures show that the recovery in credit and charge card spend in March was short-lived. Total spend rose 15 per cent to $20.9 billion in March but fell back to $17.9 billion in April.

Looking at all card payment types, debit continues to increase share, although at a slower rate. Debit accounted for 36.7 per cent of card payments in April, up from 36.6 per cent in March.