Barclays gets a licence to issue American Express cards

According to this article, Barclays has a signed a deal with American Express to issue Amex cards in the UK.  The first fruits of this deal will be seen during 2013.

At present, Lloyds and MBNA are the only two credit card groups – apart from American Express itself – to offer Amex branded cards in the UK.

This is potentially good news for Head for Points readers.  Shops that accept American Express cards pay higher fees than they do if they accept Visa or MasterCard cards.  This extra money pays for extra reward points for users – that is why, for example, the Lloyds Avios American Express card is substantially more generous than the accompanying MasterCard.

At present, Barclays issues three cards that we cover – the Hilton HHonors Visa and the Priority Club and Priority Club Black Visa cards.

In theory, we could expect to see these cards relauched, potentially as a double-pack of an American Express and a Visa – with the Amex card offering substantially more points than the Visa cards do.  One to watch as the year develops.

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – January 2021 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit or charge card, here are our January 2021 recommendations based on the current sign-up bonus. 

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here.

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these:

Disclaimer: Head for Points is a journalistic website. Nothing here should be construed as financial advice, and it is your own responsibility to ensure that any product is right for your circumstances. Recommendations are based primarily on the ability to earn miles and points and do not consider interest rates, service levels or any impact on your credit history.  By recommending credit cards on this site, I am – technically – acting as a credit broker.  Robert Burgess, trading as Head for Points, is regulated and authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a credit broker.