American Express spent the last few years updating its mobile app to make more room for PayPal users.
The newest revision enables customers to add their Amex card to PayPal by tapping a button within Amex’s mobile app, streamlining what had been a complex process, Amex announced Thursday.
The so-called app-to-app functionality is available first on Android, with iOS coming soon, Amex said.
Initially Amex executives weren't sure they could pull off the app-to-app approach.
“There are different ways of doing this type of product integration, but one way to ensure a really tight connection was to get the apps to talk to each other directly, and we pushed for it," said
The new feature marks a key milestone in an
One of the first elements of the partnership was letting PayPal merchants accept Amex loyalty points for online purchases.
Last year Amex unveiled a related upgrade, allowing Amex app users to split a transaction among friends with a PayPal or Venmo account or receive funds from PayPal or Venmo users as an Amex statement credit.
That feature, Send & Split, took two years to fully develop.
“We sequenced the work on these features we developed with PayPal, and this last piece — removing all the friction of adding an Amex card to a PayPal account — is so important because it’s centered in the app, where so much commerce is taking place now,” Schultz said.
Amex also announced Thursday that its $695-a-year Platinum card will offer statement credits for Walmart+, the retail giant's answer to Amazon Prime. The card will also add credits for SoulCycle at-home fitness.
