RIYADH, 27 August 2006 — Amex (Saudi Arabia) Ltd., which owns and operates the American Express card, has announced new simplified procedure for the issuance of Amex cards in a renewed move to win a larger share of the Saudi market.
The announcement of this simplified process, in which applicants will no longer be required to submit several documents, was made by Priyan L. Attygalle, Amex’s newly-appointed CEO, here yesterday. UAE-based Attygalle, who joins American Express from HSBC where he was regional head of credit cards services for the Middle East, said the company is aiming to revitalize and relaunch Amex products with added features in the region. “The payment card industry was seeing tremendous growth,” he said.
Amex has established a fully autonomous service center with its own technical platform in Riyadh. The company has been actively seeking merchant agreements in the Kingdom to expand the number of retail outlets that accept the card. The company is offering several incentives for customers in the region, including exclusive offers on travel discounts at hotels and restaurants.