Tuesday July 1 11:30 AM EDT
Company Press Release
Source: Wright Express Corp.
American Express and Wright Express to Jointly Market Commercial Fleet Card
NEW YORK, July 1 /PRNewswire/ -- American Express Co. (NYSE:AXP) and Wright Express Corp. have agreed to develop a commercial fleet card that will be marketed to the federal government and to corporations in the U.S. and eventually overseas.
Currently, both companies have exclusive card contracts with the U.S. Government: American Express has provided the Government Card for federal employees' official travel use since 1994, and Wright Express has been the fleet card provider since December 1996. The marketing agreement, in effect, will allow American Express and Wright Express to jointly offer a fleet card program in response to the upcoming General Services Administration card bid, which will award multiple government contracts for travel, purchasing and fleet card payment programs beginning in November 1998.
``As leaders in our respective markets, we have the capability, the customer base and overall industry presence to make this unified payment solution a great success,'' said Michael Dubyak, Senior V.P., Market Development for Wright Express. ``We are very excited about our new relationship and the opportunity for a joint program.''
``Many of our customers are eager to have a fleet card that links with their other American Express card products,'' said Dan Goren, V.P. and General Manager, American Express Government Services. ``Wright Express knows the fleet market well, and together, we can deliver a sophisticated, integrated card program that will help government agencies -- and corporations -- gain better control of their spending.''
Initially, the companies will concentrate product development on addressing the needs of the U.S. government. In the future, American Express and Wright Express will broaden their joint efforts to develop a fleet card for corporations in the U.S. and internationally.
This new fleet card program will be marketed by American Express. Wright Express will provide transaction processing, billing and customer service to American Express' fleet customers, in addition to operating its proprietary network of accepting merchants. As part of its marketing strategy, Wright Express also is expanding its network presence internationally, an effort that American Express will help support.
It is estimated that U.S. commercial vehicle fleets spend $75-$100 billion annually for motor fuel and vehicle maintenance.
Since 1993, American Express has been the exclusive provider of the U.S. Government Card, which is used by over 1.5 million federal employees for official travel-related expenses. In the corporate market, American Express services over 70 percent of the ``Fortune 500'' with a Corporate Card and/or business travel Services. The Corporate Purchasing Card, launched in 1994 to streamline the purchase of indirect expenditures, has over 350 major corporations as clients.
American Express Government Services and Corporate Services assist public and private sector organizations in managing their travel and purchasing expenses. They are divisions of American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American Express Company -- a diversified worldwide travel and financial services company founded in 1850.
Wright Express, a subsidiary of CUC International Inc. (NYSE:CU), is the leading provider of information processing, and financial and information management services to commercial car, van and truck fleets throughout the U.S. In addition to the Wright Express Universal Fleet Card -- the most widely accepted electronic fleet card in the U.S. -- Wright Express provides private-label commercial credit card programs to 16 of the nation's oil companies as well as cobranded fleet fueling cards with 19 of the top U.S. vehicle leasing companies. Currently, over 350,000 government employees use a Wright Express card for their fleet expenses. The company is based in South Portland, Maine. |
