AEC1 fundamentals

American Express Co. is an integrated payments company, which engages in the provision of credit and charge cards to consumers, small businesses, mid-sized companies, and large corporations. It operates through the following segments: the United States Consumer Services (USCS), Commercial Services (CS), International Card Services (ICS), Global Merchant and Network Services (GMNS), and Corporate and Other. The USCS segment includes proprietary consumer cards and provides services to consumers including travel and lifestyle services as well as banking and non-card financing products. The CS segment offers proprietary corporate and small business cards and provides services to businesses including payment and expense management, banking, and non-card financing products. The ICS segment focuses on providing services to international customers including travel and lifestyle services and managing certain international joint ventures and loyalty coalition businesses. The GMNS segment is involved in operating a global payments network that processes and settles card transactions, acquires merchants, and provides multi-channel marketing programs and capabilities, services and data analytics. The Corporate and Other segment covers corporate functions and certain other businesses and operations. The company was founded by Henry Wells, William G. Fargo, and John Warren Butterfield on March 28, 1850 and is headquartered in New York, NY.