Amex says the rate of new card accounts has doubled since it introduced its pricey new Platinum card

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Amex said new account acquisitions for its elite Platinum card doubled since a recent revamp.
Amex is seeing strong spending among younger cardholders and has geared some perks toward them.
Chase said it had its best year for new account acquisitions on its elite card earlier this week.

Not even multi-hundred-dollar fee hikes have stifled the consumer appetite for elite credit cards.

American Express executives said that early demand for its revamped Platinum card beat their expectations on Friday's third-quarter earnings call.

"New Platinum account acquisitions are running at twice the level before the refresh," CEO Stephen Squeri said on the company's third-quarter earnings call on Friday. So far, he said it's the "strongest start" the company has seen for a US Platinum refresh (this is the third in the last decade).

Amex unveiled its new Platinum card in September, which has an annual fee of $895. Squeri said that retention rates for existing cardholders "have been stable post refresh," adding that the $200 price hike won't go into effect for them for a few months.

As the luxury credit card wars have heated up — Chase upped its Sapphire Reserve fee and Citi introduced its Strata Elite card this summer — some have grumbled over the ever-climbing fees. According to JPMorgan Chase CFO Jeremy Barnum, however, they're not having any trouble convincing people to pay the now $795 fee for its refreshed card.

"This has already been the best year ever for new account acquisitions for our Sapphire portfolio," he said on Chase's third-quarter earnings call on Tuesday.

For Amex, the Platinum perks "appeal broadly across generations, including millennial and Gen Z consumers," Squeri said on Friday. He added that they seem to especially appreciate the wellness and entertainment bonuses.

Young cardholders have become a key Amex customer in recent years. In the first quarter of last year, the company said millennials and Gen Zers made up 75% of its new platinum and gold accounts.

Squeri also said in an interview last year that the company used to target millennials and Gen Zers with no-fee cards, but has since tried to woo them with fancier and more expensive ones. This quarter, millennial and Gen Z consumers across Amex cards tended to complete about 25% more transactions than older cohorts, CFO Christophe Le Caillec said on Friday's call.

Amex reported $421 billion in billed business — the value of transactions on Amex products — during the third quarter. The company's stock was up more than 7% by mid-afternoon on Friday.