American Express Canada reaches Agreement with Aimia and Air Canada

TORONTO, May 14, 2018 /CNW/ - American Express Canada today confirmed it has reached an agreement with Aimia, Inc. (TSX: AIM) and Air Canada (TSX: AC) to extend its agreement to remain a payments card partner in the Aeroplan rewards program. The renewed contract extends through to June 29, 2020, to be coterminous with Air Canada's participation in Aeroplan.

American Express issues a suite of Aeroplan co-branded cards with select benefits on Air Canada, and also enables other Cardmembers participating in its proprietary Membership Rewards Program to transfer points to Aeroplan.

"Having a strong partner like American Express renew demonstrates the strength of Aeroplan and the value it delivers to its partners, while providing members continued ways to accelerate their earning and enjoy access to a steady stream of program innovation," said Vince Timpano, President, Coalitions at Aimia Inc.

"This agreement will give our valued American Express card users and members added certainty as we transition to our new Air Canada program in 2020," said Benjamin Smith, President, Passenger Airlines at Air Canada.

AeroplanPlus cards are one of the fastest ways to earn Aeroplan Miles. Cardmembers will also continue to enjoy preferred Air Canada benefits such as access to Maple Leaf Lounges and Priority Check-in.

"We are pleased that the extension of this partnership maintains the continuity of the service to our Cardmembers and enables them to continue to enjoy access to the Aeroplan Rewards Program and benefits on Air Canada," said Rob McClean, President & General Manager, Amex Bank of Canada.

About American Express Canada
American Express is a global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. American Express was established in Canada in 1853 and offers a variety of consumer and business products. Learn more at americanexpress.ca and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

About Aimia
Aimia Inc.'s (TSX: AIM) data-driven marketing and loyalty analytics provides clients with the customer insights they need to make smarter business decisions and build relevant, rewarding and long-term one-to-one relationships, evolving the value exchange to the mutual benefit of both our clients and consumers.

Aimia partners with groups of companies and individual companies to help generate, collect and analyze customer data and build actionable insights.
Our businesses include Aeroplan in Canada and Air Miles Middle East. The provision of loyalty strategy, program development, implementation and management services for other clients are underpinned by leading products and technology platforms such as the Aimia Loyalty Platform – Enterprise and Aimia Loyalty Platform – SaaS, and through our analytics and insights business, including Intelligent Shopper Solutions. In other markets, we own stakes in loyalty programs, such as Club Premier in Mexico and Think Big, a partnership with Air Asia and Tune Group. Our clients are diverse, and we have industry-leading expertise in the fast-moving consumer goods, retail, financial services, and travel and airline industries globally to deliver against their unique needs.

For more information about Aimia, visit www.aimia.com.

About Air Canada
Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving more than 220 airports on six continents. Canada's flag carrier is among the 20 largest airlines in the world and in 2017 served more than 48 million customers. Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 64 airports in Canada, 59 in the United States and 98 in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and South America. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation network serving 1,317 airports in 193 countries. Air Canada is the only international network carrier in North America to receive a Four-Star ranking according to independent U.K. research firm Skytrax, which also named Air Canada the 2017 Best Airline in North America. Air Canada was also named the 2018 Eco-Airline of the Year by the respected airline industry publication Air Transport World for its commitment to emissions reductions. For more information, please visit: aircanada.com/media, follow @AirCanada on Twitter and join Air Canada on Facebook.  

SOURCE American Express Canada