Costco to Replace Amex With Citi and Visa Cards

By Colin Wilhelm March 02, 2015, 10:11 a.m. EST 1 Min Read

Costco has picked Visa as its new payment card network and Citigroup as the new issuer of its cobranded credit cards.

The membership warehouse retailer announced last month that it would move on from its cobranding deal with American Express, which has been the company's card partner for 16 years. Amex said it could not come to an agreement with Costco, and it would rely on new technology initiatives to offset the loss of the retailer.

Amex faces other challenges, such as responding to its recent loss in an anti-trust case. It also recently raised rates for more than one million customers.

Costcos deal with Visa, announced Monday, hinges on Citigroup purchasing the existing co-brand portfolio. The banking giant will become the exclusive card issuer of Costco's cobranded cards while Visa will take over the network role previously enjoyed by American Express on April 1, 2016.

Costco said it will provide more details in coming months.

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.

MORE FROM AMERICAN BANKER

Cryptocurrency

Fed joins other regulators in rolling back crypto policies

The Federal Reserve withdrew expectations on crypto activity and dollar tokenization, while the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency also withdrew their versions of the guidance.

By Kyle Campbell

1h ago
Earnings

Office valuation concerns lead to shrinking profits at Eagle

The Washington, D.C.-area bank reported a significant boost in provisions to cover emerging vulnerabilities in its $1 billion portfolio of office loans.

By John Reosti

7h ago
M&A

Columbia to expand in California through $2 billion deal

Tacoma, Washington-based Columbia Banking System said it will buy Pacific Premier Bancorp, accelerating its growth in Southern California by about a decade. The deal is Columbia's second major acquisition in three years.

By Catherine Leffert

7h ago
FDIC

Warren and banking colleagues probe FDIC over DOGE efforts

A cohort of Democratic senators on the banking committee expressed concern over the Department of Government Efficiency's ongoing efforts to cut Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. staff and contracts, saying they worried the efforts could weaken the nation's deposit insurer and expose sensitive bank data if improperly handled.

By Ebrima Santos Sanneh

8h ago
Fraud prevention

Fintechs warned to step up anti-fraud efforts using AI

At a New York Fintech Week event, speakers urged fintechs to better understand the criminal mindset and to use artificial intelligence to detect and thwart fraud.

By Penny Crosman

8h ago
Federal Reserve

Fed official: 'Some' repo volatility is good for the market

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Beth Hammack said the central bank should not let fears of money-market shakiness cause it to stop balance sheet runoff too soon.

By Kyle Campbell

8h ago