Business Context and Reporting Period
This Form 8-K filing by American Express Company (AXP) was submitted on April 15, 2025, under Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure. The report provides preliminary delinquency and write-off statistics for the U.S. Consumer and U.S. Small Business Card Member lending portfolios for the months ended January 31, February 28, and March 31, 2025, as well as the three-month period ended March 31, 2025.
Effective December 1, 2024, the Company reclassified Card Member loans related to its Lowe's small business cobrand portfolio to "held for sale." These loans are excluded from the statistics presented, which reflect only loans held for investment.
Key Financial Metrics
U.S. Consumer Card Member Loans
- Total Loans (March 31, 2025): $90.1 billion
- Average Loans (Q1 2025): $90.0 billion
- 30+ Days Past Due: 1.4% (consistent across Jan, Feb, and Mar 2025)
- Net Write-off Rate (Q1 2025): 2.4% (principal only)
U.S. Small Business Card Member Loans
- Total Loans (March 31, 2025): $31.2 billion
- Average Loans (Q1 2025): $30.3 billion
- 30+ Days Past Due: 1.6% (consistent across Jan, Feb, and Mar 2025)
- Net Write-off Rate (Q1 2025): 2.6% (principal only)
Total Card Member Loans (Consumer + Small Business)
- Total Loans (March 31, 2025): $121.3 billion
American Express Credit Account Master Trust (Lending Trust)
- Ending Principal Balance (March 2025): $25.3 billion
- Annualized Default Rate (March 2025): 1.5%
- Total 30+ Days Delinquent: $0.2 billion
Material Changes and Trends
Loan Balances: Total U.S. Consumer loans increased from $89.4 billion in January to $90.1 billion in March. Small Business loans grew from $30.1 billion in January to $31.2 billion in March.
Credit Quality: Delinquency rates (30+ days past due) remained stable at 1.4% for Consumer and 1.6% for Small Business across all three months reported. Net write-off rates for the quarter were 2.4% for Consumer and 2.6% for Small Business, showing minor month-to-month fluctuations but overall stability.
Lending Trust Performance: The annualized default rate for the Lending Trust improved to 1.5% in March 2025 from 1.8% in February 2025.
Management Commentary and Risks
The filing notes that the credit performance of the Lending Trust may differ from the total portfolio due to differences in loan mix, vintage, aging, and calculation mechanics (e.g., end-of-period balances vs. average balances). Variability in monthly statistics may also result from the number of days in a month, holiday timing, seasonality, and third-party data timing.
The filing explicitly states that the statistics are preliminary and that the Lending Trust data is reported separately in Form 10-D filings.
Investor Verification Checklist
- Verify the final, non-preliminary Q1 2025 earnings report for confirmed write-off and delinquency rates.
- Review the Form 10-D filings for the American Express Credit Account Master Trust to compare Lending Trust performance against the broader portfolio.
- Confirm the impact of the Lowe's small business cobrand portfolio reclassification on future "held for investment" metrics.
- Monitor subsequent monthly reports for any deviation from the stable 1.4% (Consumer) and 1.6% (Small Business) delinquency trends.