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Amazon.com Inc. has significantly revamped its business credit card program, transitioning new applicants to U.S. Bank and Mastercard. This strategic shift introduces the new Prime Business Card and Amazon Business Card, designed to offer expanded rewards, flexible financing options, and robust spend management tools tailored to the evolving needs of business buyers. The updated program, officially launched on May 13, marks a departure from Amazon’s previous partnership with American Express, which had issued its business cards since 2018. This move underscores Amazon’s ongoing commitment to enhancing its business-to-business (B2B) marketplace, Amazon Business, by integrating purchasing, payments, and control mechanisms more seamlessly for its corporate clients.
Amazon Business, a powerhouse in the B2B e-commerce landscape, has been steadily building out its service offerings. Its position as the No. 1 retailer in Digital Commerce 360’s Top 2000 Database, which tracks North America’s largest online retailers by e-commerce sales, highlights its significant market presence. Furthermore, Amazon ranks third in Digital Commerce 360’s Global Online Marketplaces Database, a testament to its dominance in facilitating third-party sales. The introduction of these new credit cards represents a critical step in Amazon’s strategy to deepen customer loyalty and provide a more comprehensive financial ecosystem for businesses operating on its platform and beyond.
A New Era of Rewards and Flexibility
The refreshed credit card offerings aim to directly address feedback from Amazon’s business clientele. Shelley Salomon, vice president of Amazon Business, articulated that customers expressed a clear desire for "more rewards outside of Amazon, more flexibility in how they pay, and more control over how their teams spend." The new cards are engineered to fulfill these demands, featuring rewards that dynamically adjust to individual spending patterns, interest-free installment payment options, and integrated spend management functionalities.
While the most lucrative rewards continue to be tied to Amazon-related expenditures, the scope of these benefits has been thoughtfully expanded. The Prime Business Card, exclusively for Prime members, offers an impressive 5% back on eligible U.S. purchases made through Amazon Business, Amazon.com, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Whole Foods Market. This generous reward rate is capped at $150,000 in annual spending, providing substantial value for businesses that heavily utilize Amazon’s diverse portfolio of services. For businesses that do not hold a Prime membership, the Amazon Business Card provides a still-attractive 3% back on eligible U.S. Amazon purchases, also subject to the same $150,000 annual spending limit.
Both card variants come with significant advantages for cost-conscious businesses, boasting no annual fees and no foreign transaction fees, thereby reducing overhead and facilitating international commerce.
However, the true innovation lies in the expansion of rewards beyond Amazon’s direct channels. The new program automatically awards cardholders 2% back on their top three eligible spending categories each statement cycle for purchases made outside of Amazon. This dynamic reward structure, capped at $150,000 in annual spending for these categories, ensures that businesses earn valuable rebates on a broad spectrum of their operational expenses. All other non-Amazon purchases will earn a standard 1% back.
Travel expenses, a significant outlay for many businesses, are also integrated into the rewards program. Prime Business Card holders can earn 5% back on travel booked through the U.S. Bank Travel Center, while Amazon Business Card holders will receive 3% back on similar travel bookings. This feature aims to consolidate business travel spending and offer a tangible return on investment for these expenditures.
Empowering Businesses with Advanced Financing and Spend Controls
Beyond the attractive reward structures, Amazon has introduced a suite of payment and spend-management features designed to empower businesses with greater control over their purchasing processes. A key feature is the ability to split eligible Amazon purchases into fixed monthly payments with a 0% Annual Percentage Rate (APR) for up to 12 months. This flexible financing option can significantly ease cash flow for businesses, allowing them to manage larger purchases without incurring immediate interest charges. It is important to note, however, that purchases made using this installment option will not accrue rewards.
The integration of these new cards with Amazon Business tools and U.S. Bank’s Spend Management platform is a critical component of the enhanced offering. Businesses can now gain real-time visibility into their spending, access itemized reports with detailed Amazon transaction information, establish specific spending limits for different users or departments, and issue an unlimited number of virtual cards. These virtual cards can be configured with precise spend restrictions and expiration dates, offering an unparalleled level of security and control over employee expenditures.
Mastercard’s involvement brings a robust layer of security and global acceptance to the program. The cards are equipped with advanced fraud monitoring powered by artificial intelligence, Zero Liability protection, tokenization, and sophisticated cybersecurity tools, providing businesses with peace of mind. With acceptance at over 100 million locations worldwide, the cards offer convenience and reliability for both domestic and international business operations.
For existing Amazon Business American Express cardholders, a smooth transition process has been outlined. They can continue to utilize their current cards and accrue rewards without interruption during the transition period. Amazon has stated that these customers will receive replacement cards that can be activated starting August 14, with all accumulated rewards seamlessly transferred to the new U.S. Bank-issued cards.
This issuer switch also signifies a significant expansion of U.S. Bank’s role in Amazon’s small business payment strategy. U.S. Bank, which serves over 1.4 million small business clients, views this partnership as an opportunity to introduce additional, innovative services to its small business customer base over time, further solidifying its commitment to supporting entrepreneurial growth.
Amazon Business: A Growing Ecosystem of Services
The relaunch of the business credit card program is occurring against the backdrop of Amazon’s continuous expansion of services within its Amazon Business marketplace. This B2B platform has demonstrated remarkable growth, now generating more than $35 billion in annualized gross sales and serving over 8 million organizations globally. Its impressive client roster includes 97 of the Fortune 100 companies, underscoring its strategic importance to large enterprises.
In a move to further streamline procurement processes, Amazon recently enhanced its Amazon Business Assistant. This AI-powered assistant now offers advanced conversational capabilities, enabling business and procurement teams to navigate complex tasks such as tax-exempt purchasing, managing approval workflows, implementing spend controls, tracking order status, and monitoring spending anomalies. This integration of AI aims to automate and simplify many of the administrative burdens associated with business purchasing.
Complementing these efforts, business customers can now leverage Alexa for Shopping, Amazon’s new AI agent, directly within the Amazon Business interface. This allows for more intuitive and hands-free browsing and purchasing experiences.
Furthermore, Amazon Business has been actively diversifying its product and service offerings. Earlier in May, the platform introduced same-day delivery of fresh groceries to businesses in over 2,300 U.S. cities and towns. This innovative service allows business customers to procure essential items like produce, dairy, baked goods, and frozen foods alongside traditional office supplies and other everyday business products, catering to a wider range of operational needs.
The strategic enhancements to the Amazon Business credit card program, coupled with the continuous evolution of the marketplace itself, signal Amazon’s determined effort to capture a larger share of the B2B market by providing a comprehensive, integrated, and financially advantageous platform for businesses of all sizes. The shift to U.S. Bank and Mastercard represents not just a change in card issuers, but a fundamental enhancement of the financial tools available to Amazon’s business clientele, aiming to foster greater efficiency, control, and reward.
