Amex cuts concierge service after review
End of personal assistance for Platinum credit card customers leaves issuer with less scope to differentiate itself from its bigger rivals
American Express is partially withdrawing the concierge service for high-end clients that it launched to mark itself out as a classier option than rivals Visa and MasterCard.
Amex did not provide any particular reason for suspending the service, linked to what it describes on its website as the "most popular" card in Hong Kong.
"In Hong Kong, we review the features of our card products from time to time with an aim to provide the most suitable benefits and services which meet the lifestyles and changing needs of our card members," said Priscilla Wat, an Amex spokeswoman in Hong Kong, in an e-mailed response to an inquiry from the South China Morning Post.
The suspension of the concierge service will affect only Amex's Platinum credit card holders rather than all higher-level card holders such as those who have Amex's Centurion card, Wat said.
Widely known as the "Amex black card", the Centurion card is popular among senior finance-sector executives.