How does
interest work?
Learn about the Flexible Payment Option (FPO), including how you can spread the cost of your purchases and make interest-free payments.
This feature is only available to American Express® Business Platinum Card and American Express® Business Gold Card Members in the United Kingdom.
Understanding your interest charges
You have up to a 54 day* payment period interest free to pay back any charges on your Account in full. If you need additional
time to pay, you can use Flexible Payment Option, which allows you to extend your cashflow window. It works like a line of credit,
but has no additional paperwork. It's completely optional and you will only pay interest if you pay less than the full balance back.
* The maximum payment period on purchases is up to 54 calendar days and is obtained only if you spend on the first day of the new statement period and repay the balance in full on the due date.
Your purchase rate is calculated
by adding your personal rate to the Bank
of England Base Rate — this is your
'simple' rate.
This is the rate you will pay if you choose to not repay your balance in full on your statement due date.
Your annual simple rate is converted into
a daily rate, by dividing it by the number of
days in a year (365). The daily rate is then
applied and added to the amount you
owe each day.
For example, if you owed £1,000 and had a
'simple' rate of 20%, the amount you would
pay in interest for one year would be 20%
of £1,000, which is £200.
This amount would then be divided
by the number of days in a year:
£200 ÷ 365, which is 55p.
The interest is added to your Account every day. So, the following day you would pay interest on a balance of £1,000.55. This is 'compound interest'. And it means you pay interest on the interest you're charged, not just on the things you buy.
| DAY | AMOUNT OWNED |
YEARLY INTEREST (RATE 20%) |
DAILY INTEREST |
TOTAL AMOUNT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | £1000.00 | £200 | £0.55 | £1000.55 |
| Day 2 | £1000.55 | £200.11 | £0.55 | £1001.10 |
| Day 40 | £1022.00 | £204.40 | £0.56 | £1022.56 |
DAY
Day 1
AMOUNT OWNED
£1000.00
YEARLY INTEREST (RATE 20%)
£200
DAILY INTEREST
£0.55
TOTAL AMOUNT
£1000.55
DAY
Day 2
AMOUNT OWNED
£1000.55
YEARLY INTEREST (RATE 20%)
£200.11
DAILY INTEREST
£0.55
TOTAL AMOUNT
£1001.10
DAY
Day 40
AMOUNT OWNED
£1022.00
YEARLY INTEREST (RATE 20%)
£204.40
DAILY INTEREST
£0.56
TOTAL AMOUNT
£1022.56
Frequently Asked Questions
Simply put, if you pay less than your full balance by your payment due date, interest will be applied to the amount on your Account until the balance is paid in full.
You can see your monthly interest rates at the top of your monthly statement. You’ll also see an estimate of the interest that will be applied to your Account, assuming you can only pay the minimum amount due. You can keep an eye on your statement at all times, via your Online Account or Amex App.
We won’t charge you interest when you pay your statement balance in full by the due date, and did not carry a balance over from the previous statement, or on any amount over your FPO credit limit, any late payment fees or returned payment fees.
Yes, we’ll always let you know in advance if your interest rate is changing, because the Base Rate has changed.
We’ll tell you of the change on the statement before it happens. We’ll also let you know about Base Rate changes on our website and in the press.
If your interest rate is changing for any other reason, we’ll give you at least 30 days’ notice if it’s going up. And if it’s going down, we’ll still give you notice, but might make the change sooner.
