American Express Company is rolling out its business credit card in Nigeria, marking the first of its kind in the country. This initiative, resulting from a partnership with local neobank O3 Capital, aims to provide business owners with a spending limit of $10,000 and a repayment period of up to 45 days for international transactions, as reported by Bloomberg.
The launch of this card is expected to enhance working capital access in Nigeria, according to the Bloomberg report. Mohammed Badi, Amex’s president of global network services, emphasized the significance of this milestone, stating that it offers another avenue to support local businesses in their growth endeavors.
Badi expressed American Express’ enthusiasm to strengthen its presence in Nigeria and expand across Africa. Additionally, plans are underway to extend American Express’ reach to 42 countries, up from the current 30, driven by increasing demand from consumers and small businesses, as reported by Bloomberg.
Apart from the business credit card, American Express and O3 are collaborating to introduce cards for personal and household use, featuring spending limits ranging from $10,000 to $20,000. The O3 Amex card addresses the hassle of queuing at banks for business and personal travel allowances, according to O3 Chief Executive Officer Abimbola Pinheiro.
O3 aims to issue 16,000 American Express cards by the year’s end and a million cards over the next five years. Furthermore, plans are underway to offer these cards in other countries, including Rwanda, Congo, and Ghana, with the goal of issuing Amex cards in these regions by the end of next year.
