Consumer complaint received 2024-05-10 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Other features, terms, or problems — Other problem
Company: AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY
State: MO

Complaint narrative:
XX/XX/XXXX AMERICAN EXPRESS C/O XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Investor Services XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX New York XXXX XXXX Reference Number : XXXX Dear XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX writing to you as an investor, seeking American Express to fulfill its fiduciary duties in a barter agreement. I have provided you with a promissory note via my original credit application, and therefore became an investor into your company, thus making me eligible to receive benefits in exchange. The reason my application can be considered a promissory note is because it is a signed document that is transferable to third parties and also promises a sum of payment, making this an eligible investment per the American Express Indenture listed below and included with this letter. In the American Express Securities Exchange Commission filings : Exhibit 4.5, page 9, dated XX/XX/XXXX, of the THIRD AMENDED AND RESTATED INDENTURE for AMERICAN EXPRESS ISSUANCE TRUST II as Issuer and THE XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX as Indenture Trustee, and as Securities Intermediary, it states that Eligible Investments means negotiable instruments, investment property, or deposit accounts that evidence : ( a ) direct obligations of, or obligations fully guaranteed as to timely payment by, the United States of America.

12 U.S.C. 1813 ( l ) The term deposit means ( 1 ) the unpaid balance of money or its equivalent received or held by a bank or savings association in the usual course of business and for which it has given or is obligated to give credit, either conditionally or unconditionally, to a commercial, checking, savings, time, or thrift account, or which is evidenced by its certificate of deposit, thrift certificate, investment certificate, certificate of indebtedness, or other similar name, or a check or draft drawn against a deposit account and certified by the bank or savings association, or a letter of credit or a travelers check on which the bank or savings association is primarily liable : Provided that, without limiting the generality of the term money or its equivalent, any such account or instrument must be regarded as evidencing the receipt of the equivalent of money when credited or issued in exchange for checks or drafts or for a promissory note upon which the person obtaining any such credit or instrument is primarily or secondarily liable, or for a charge against a deposit account, or in settlement of checks, drafts, or other instruments forwarded to such bank or savings association for collection. According to the American Express SEC filings, it states in the Prospectus Supplement dated XX/XX/XXXX XXXX ( b ) ( XXXX ) : We will not list the notes on any exchange. It also states under Risk Factors : Risk Factors Applicable to Debt Securities, We do not intend to apply for listing of the notes on any securities exchange or for quotation through any automated dealer quotation system. The same filing states from the American Express Prospectus Supplement, Page ( ii ) under ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS, This prospectus describes the general terms of these securities and the general manner in which we will offer the securities. And Page 30. Global Securities and Global Clearance and Settlement Procedures : We will issue debt securities under a book-entry system in the form of one or more global securities. We will register the global securities in the name of a depositary or its nominee and deposit the global securities with that depositary. The Depository Trust Company, New York, New York, which we refer to as DTC, will be the depositary if we use a depositary, and we will register the debt securities in the name of Cede & Co., DTCs nominee.

It is my understanding, that, according to the financial SEC filings of American Express listed above and the highlighted text included with this letter ; American Express explicitly states, We will not list the notes on any exchange. But American Express also explicitly states that We only issue the notes in book-entry form registered in the name of a nominee of the DTC, Cede & Co. '' , which is the central securities depository used by the United States XXXX XXXX XXXX, which includes the New York XXXX XXXX XXXX and XXXX. XXXX as well as XXXX are considered secondary markets, and American Express explicitly expressed they would not sell to these exchanges in accordance with their Prospectus Supplement 424 ( b ) ( 2 ) dated XX/XX/XXXX. Furthermore, it is my understanding that my note is being sold and traded on the secondary markets by the person that is registered as a " clearing agency under the federal securities laws per the Securities Exchange Act of 1933 and according to the American Express Prospectus Supplement SEC filings and registered under the depository nominee name ; Cede & Co on behalf of the DTC, which according to page 31 of the prospectus, holds securities deposited with it by its participants and facilitates the settlement of transactions among its participants in such securities through electronic computerized book-entry changes in accounts of the participants. DTCs participants include securities brokers and dealers, clearing corporations, and certain other organizations. Access to DTCs book-entry system is also available to others, such as banks, brokers, dealers, and trust companies that clear through or maintain a custodial relationship with a participant, either directly or indirectly. American Express is inputting securities as a book-entry form, registered in the name of a nominee of The Depository Trust Company , Cede & Co. , due to the Electronic Funds Transfer Act of 1978, and by doing so, effectively masking a contract as a gift, as I have yet to receive any valuable consideration. This is a clear breach of the contractual rights of my note, securities fraud, and breach of the fiduciary duties of American Express, as it is American Express who stated in their forms they would not sell securities on any exchange and that they would have these obligations and now are choosing to not perform or acknowledge their forms filed with the Securities Exchange Commission. If my concerns are not addressed, I will report the CUSIP and other relevant information to the Securities Exchange Commission, as the American Express Prospectus clearly states the notes will not be placed on any secondary market.

Your timely attention to this matter is greatly appreciated. Thank you. 
Sincerely, XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation