Contingencies

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2026

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Contingencies

Contingencies

In the ordinary course of business, we and our subsidiaries are subject to various pending and potential legal actions, arbitration proceedings, claims, investigations, examinations, regulatory proceedings, information gathering requests, subpoenas, inquiries and matters relating to compliance with laws and regulations (collectively, legal proceedings).

Based on our current knowledge, and taking into consideration our litigation-related liabilities, we do not believe we are a party to, nor are any of our properties the subject of, any legal proceeding that would have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial condition or liquidity. However, in light of the uncertainties involved in such matters, including the fact that some pending legal proceedings are at preliminary stages or seek an indeterminate amount of damages, penalties or fines, it is possible that the outcome of legal proceedings could have a material impact on our results of operations. Certain legal proceedings involving us or our subsidiaries are described below.

On September 30, 2024, we were named as a defendant in a case filed in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, captioned Pizza Hazel, Inc., et al. v. American Express Co., et al., in which plaintiffs allege that the anti-steering and non-discrimination provisions in our merchant agreements violate federal antitrust law and that the arbitration provision in our merchant agreements violates federal antitrust law to the extent it prevents antitrust challenges to our anti-steering and non-discrimination provisions. Plaintiffs seek, on behalf of themselves and a class of merchants that accept through the OptBlue Program, unspecified damages and an injunction prohibiting us from enforcing our anti-steering and non-discrimination provisions and prohibiting us from enforcing our arbitration provision to the extent the arbitration provision prevents antitrust challenges to our anti-steering and non-discrimination provisions. The court rejected our motion to compel the case to arbitration; we have appealed the decision to the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

On March 21, 2024, we were named as a defendant in a case filed in the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island, captioned 5-Star General Store aka Bento LLC, et al. v. American Express Co., et al., in which plaintiffs allege that the anti-steering and non-discrimination provisions in our merchant agreements violate federal antitrust law and seek, on behalf of themselves and a class of merchants, an injunction prohibiting us from enforcing our anti-steering and non-discrimination provisions and a declaration that we have violated antitrust laws. The court rejected our motion to compel the case to arbitration and that decision was affirmed by the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

On October 16, 2025, KServicing Wind Down Corp., the post-bankruptcy wind-down estate of Kabbage, Inc. (Kabbage), filed an action against American Express Kabbage Inc. and American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc., captioned KServicing Wind Down Corp, et al. v. American Express Kabbage Inc. (f/k/a Alpha Kabbage, Inc.) and American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc., in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, seeking to recover up to approximately $746 million. The complaint alleges that our acquisition of Kabbage’s lending platform and other specified assets and liabilities included a fraudulent transfer that left Kabbage insolvent due to Kabbage’s liabilities, including those owed to the Department of Justice and Small Business Administration arising from Kabbage’s participation in the Paycheck Protection Program. The complaint seeks to avoid the alleged fraudulent transfer and recover the value of that transfer from us. A separate complaint seeking to recover some or all of the same amount was also filed on October 16, 2025 against certain of Kabbage’s former directors, officers and shareholders, who have taken the position that we must indemnify them for any resulting liability (which we dispute).

On May 15, 2026, a putative class action, captioned Rivetti v. American Express Company, et al., was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against us and certain fiduciaries of American Express Retirement Savings Plan (Plan) alleging violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). The complaint alleges that the defendants violated certain ERISA obligations by: allowing the investment of Plan assets in certain funds that underperformed benchmarks and comparator funds; selecting and retaining an investment manager that also had business relationships with us; and breaching certain fiduciary obligations. The suit seeks, among other remedies, an unspecified amount of damages. We intend to vigorously defend against these claims.

On October 8, 2026, American Express Company and American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. consented to an order issued by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and American Express National Bank (AENB) consented to an order issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to resolve previously disclosed reviews by the banking regulators of certain aspects of our financial crimes compliance program. AENB also agreed to pay a civil money penalty of $350 million to the OCC.

We are being challenged in a number of countries regarding our application of value-added taxes (VAT) to certain of our international transactions, which are in various stages of audit, or are being contested in legal actions. While we believe we have complied with all applicable tax laws, rules and regulations in the relevant jurisdictions, the tax authorities may determine that we owe additional VAT. In certain jurisdictions where we are contesting the assessments, we were required to pay the VAT assessments prior to contesting.

Our legal proceedings range from cases brought by a single plaintiff to class actions with millions of putative class members to governmental proceedings. These legal proceedings involve various lines of business and a variety of claims (including, but not limited to, common law tort, contract, application of tax laws, antitrust and consumer protection claims), some of which present novel factual allegations and/or unique legal theories. While some matters pending against us specify the damages sought, many seek an unspecified amount of damages or are at very early stages of the legal process. Even when the amount of damages claimed against us are stated, the claimed amount may be exaggerated and/or unsupported. As a result, some matters have not yet progressed sufficiently through discovery and/or development of important factual information and legal issues to enable us to estimate an amount of loss or a range of possible loss, while other matters have progressed sufficiently such that we are able to estimate an amount of loss or a range of possible loss.

We have accrued for certain of our outstanding legal proceedings. An accrual is recorded when it is both (a) probable that a loss has occurred and (b) the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. There may be instances in which an exposure to loss exceeds the accrual. We evaluate, on a quarterly basis, developments in legal proceedings that could cause an increase or decrease in the amount of the accrual that has been previously recorded, or a revision to the disclosed estimated range of possible loss, as applicable.

For those disclosed legal proceedings where a loss is reasonably possible in future periods, whether in excess of a recorded accrual for legal or tax contingencies, or where there is no such accrual, and for which we are able to estimate a range of possible loss, the current estimated range is zero to $150 million in excess of any accruals related to those matters. This range represents management’s estimate based on currently available information and does not represent our maximum loss exposure; actual results may vary significantly. As such legal proceedings evolve, we may need to increase our range of possible loss or recorded accruals. In addition, it is possible that significantly increased merchant steering or other actions impairing the Card Member experience as a result of an adverse resolution in one or any combination of the disclosed merchant cases could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.