"American Express issued its first charge card in 1958. Within five years, more than 1 million cards were in use at approximately 85,000 establishments within and outside the United States.

Soon, the company began introducing local currency cards in markets outside the United States, adding programs that made it possible for cardmembers to extend payment on large travel expenditures, and launching additional products, such as the American Express Gold Card in 1966. Within ten years, the card business was growing steadily and generating a healthy profit. And, to the surprise of many, so was the company’s travelers cheque business.

In the late 1970s, American Express – like many other large companies of the era – was intent on becoming a global conglomerate, with huge, multifaceted businesses and diversified income streams that could protect the company in the event of hard times in one of its core businesses.

During the next several years the company acquired several large acquisitions toward that end, including Shearson Loeb Rhoades, First Data Resources, Trade Development Bank, Lehman Brothers Kuhn Loeb, and Investors Diversified Services (rebranded American Express Financial Advisors in 1995 and spun off as Ameriprise, Inc. in 2005)."

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