Record number of Amex card members
City Bank American Express Lounge opens

FE Report

Leading private commercial financier City Bank opened its own lounge at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in the city Tuesday.

The new lounge, named 'City Bank American Expresss Lounge' is for exclusive use of the City Bank issued-American Express Gold Credit Card members and their spouses and children, the bank officials said.

The state-of-the-art lounge, managed by Dhaka Sheraton Hotel, is also claimed to be the first airport lounge to be sponsored by a private company in Bangladesh.

"The lounge will be of truly international standard and quality and we are particularly proud that the name of the lounge bears the coming together of two reputed brands of high stature", the City Bank Chairman Aziz Al Kaiser said at a press conference on the eve of opening the lounge in the capital.

"The opening of the lounge is not only a big milestone for our bank's business, but it is also a great step forward for the country's tourism industry as well", Aziz added.

City Bank's latest initiative comes just eight months after it tied up with international financial giant American Express to offer Amex card to the Bangladeshi clients and the bank officials termed the move as an immense success.

"The number of Amex card members we have now in just eight months, both in the issuing side and the acquiring side is a market record", City Bank Chief Executive K Mahmood Sattar said, adding, "even no foreign bank could do so well in such a short time".

"The successful entry of Amex card in the Bangladeshi market testifies the growing financial capacity of the local consumers and the bettering economic scenario of the country", said Kula Kulendran, Executive Vice President and regional head of American Express GNS Business.

Earlier the leading private bank was also awarded the "Strongest Bank in Bangladesh-2010" by The Asian Banker while its CEO K Mahmood Sattar received "The Asian Banker Leadership Achievement Award".

The age-old private bank currently operates through 87 online branches, 50 ATMs, 10 SME Service Centers, 16 SME Centers, one booth at airport, a cards office and a call center.