PayPal Expands Partnership with American Express

PayPal and American Express are expanding their partnership, a sign of the growing popularity of peer-to-peer payment services.

As part of the expansion, American Express payments can be made with Venmo or PayPal, and members will be able to use rewards points for PayPal purchases.

Here’s what AmEx cardholders need to know about the changes:

• Changes may take a while to occur. All new features are expected to be implemented by the end of 2019.

• Online purchase security will be amped up. The American Express Token Service, which disguises card numbers for online purchases, will be integrated into the PayPal site.

• Sending money to friends via PayPal and Venmo will be integrated into the AmEx app. You can essentially charge your AmEx card when reimbursing your friends and family for a purchase.

• You might be able to use your AmEx card and rewards with vendors that didn’t accept them before. With the millions of vendors that allow PayPal for payment, AmEx cards and rewards become a lot more versatile.

• AmEx cards can be added to PayPal wallet through the AmEx site and app. Cards will have AmEx-specific branding within PayPal wallet for easy identification.

• The new process adds the ability to pay American Express bills with PayPal and Venmo accounts. This feature could be especially beneficial for freelancers, small businesses or even those who are collecting sales on eBay; it helps cardmembers use various incomes to pay their bill.