Specialty Finance
American Express Executive Compensation (FY25)
AXP · New York, NY · Executive and director compensation, fiscal 2022 to 2025
Data as of September 7, 2026Latest filing (8-K): May 7, 2026
306 figures on this page: 298 cited to the filing that reported them, 8 calculated from figures it prints. See the citations
The disclosed peer group names Adobe, Bank of America, BlackRock, BNY and Capital One Financial, among others. Total compensation for Stephen Squeri, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, came to $46,239,805 in fiscal 2025, and compared with the $37,164,405 reported for fiscal 2024, Squeri's total was 24.4% higher, while for fiscal 2025, the company reported a chief executive pay ratio of 814:1, against median employee compensation of $56,827. For fiscal 2025, shareholders backed the say-on-pay proposal with 93.3% of votes cast for or against in favor at the meeting held May 5, 2026.
What changed from fiscal 2024 to fiscal 2025
The figures that moved, and by how much. Analysis of these figures is part of the Velarion platform.
Chief executive total compensation — Stephen Squeri: $37,164,405 → $46,239,805 (24.4% higher)
Say-on-pay support: 92.9% → 93.3% (0.4 points higher)
CEO pay ratio: 615:1 → 814:1 (32.4% higher)
Frequently asked questions
Answers drawn from the data on this page.
Who is American Express' chief executive and what were they paid?
Total compensation for Stephen Squeri, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, came to $46,239,805 in fiscal 2025. Compared with the $37,164,405 reported for fiscal 2024, Squeri's total was 24.4% higher.
What was American Express' say-on-pay result?
For fiscal 2025, shareholders backed the say-on-pay proposal with 93.3% of votes cast for or against in favor at the meeting held May 5, 2026.
Which companies are in American Express' peer group?
The disclosed peer group names Adobe, Bank of America, BlackRock, BNY and Capital One Financial, among others.
What is American Express' chief executive pay ratio?
For fiscal 2025, the company reported a chief executive pay ratio of 814:1, against median employee compensation of $56,827.
Executive compensation
Every element reported for each named executive officer, by fiscal year.
Fiscal 2022
| Officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stephen Squeri Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Anre Williams Group President, Enterprise Services and CEO American Express National Bank | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Douglas Buckminster Vice Chairman | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Jeffrey Campbell Former Vice Chairman and Former Chief Financial Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Laureen Seeger Chief Legal Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Fiscal 2023
| Officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stephen Squeri Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Douglas Buckminster Vice Chairman | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Jeffrey Campbell Former Vice Chairman and Former Chief Financial Officer Departed during or after this year | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Anre Williams Group President, Enterprise Services and CEO American Express National Bank | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Laureen Seeger Chief Legal Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Christophe Le Caillec Chief Financial Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Fiscal 2024
| Officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stephen Squeri Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Douglas Buckminster Vice Chairman | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Anre Williams Former Group President, Enterprise Services and Former CEO of AENB Departed during or after this year | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Laureen Seeger Chief Legal Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Christophe Le Caillec Chief Financial Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Fiscal 2025
| Officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Stephen Squeri Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Douglas Buckminster Former Vice Chairman Departed during or after this year | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Christophe Le Caillec Chief Financial Officer | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Howard Grosfield President, U.S. Consumer Services | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Raymond Joabar Group President, Global Commercial Services | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero. A negative change in pension value is shown but, as the company reports it, not included in the total.
Equity awards granted
Individual awards as disclosed: type, date, unit counts at each level, and grant date value.
Fiscal 2025
| Officer | Award | Grant date | Threshold units | Target units | Units granted | Maximum units | Exercise price | Grant date fair value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christophe Le Caillec | OPTION | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
| Christophe Le Caillec | PSU | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Douglas Buckminster | RSU | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Douglas Buckminster | PSU | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Douglas Buckminster | OPTION | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
| Howard Grosfield | OPTION | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
| Howard Grosfield | PSU | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Raymond Joabar | PSU | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
| Raymond Joabar | OPTION | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
| Stephen Squeri | OPTION | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | ◇ | ◇ |
| Stephen Squeri | PSU | ◇ | — | — | ◇ | — | — | ◇ |
Fiscal 2023, 2024 are included in the PDF.
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero. Threshold, target and maximum apply only to performance awards and are never shown for time-based or option awards.
Outstanding awards
Awards still held at fiscal year end.
As disclosed at fiscal 2025 year end
| Officer | Award | Unvested units | Market value of unvested units | Exercise price | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Howard Grosfield | Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/31/2034 |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 10/31/2029 | |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/29/2035 | |
| Stephen Squeri | Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/29/2035 |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/31/2034 | |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 2/1/2033 | |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/31/2034 | |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 10/31/2029 | |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/29/2035 | |
| Douglas Buckminster | Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/29/2035 |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/31/2034 | |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 2/1/2033 | |
| Raymond Joabar | Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 10/31/2029 |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 2/1/2033 | |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/31/2034 | |
| Option | ◇ | — | ◇ | 1/29/2035 |
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero.
Director compensation
What each non-employee director was paid.
Fiscal 2025
| Director | Fees earned in cash | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension and deferred earnings | All other compensation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lynn A. Pike | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
John J. Brennan Lead independent director | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Daniel L. Vasella | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Theodore J. Leonsis | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Christopher D. Young | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Thomas J. Baltimore | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Deborah P. Majoras | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Karen L. Parkhill | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Lisa W. Wardell | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Charles E. Phillips | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Michael J. Angelakis | ◇ | ◇ | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Noel Wallace | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Randal K. Quarles | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Walter J. Clayton III | ◇ | — | — | — | — | ◇ | ◇ |
Stephen J. Squeri served on the board in fiscal 2025 and received no compensation for board service. Executive directors are typically paid through their executive roles, shown above.
Earlier years are included in the PDF.
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column. $0 is shown only where the filing prints a zero.
Director fee schedule
The standing retainers and premiums the board pays, as published.
| Board cash retainer | ◇ |
| Board equity retainer | ◇ |
| Total board retainer | ◇ |
| Lead independent director premium | ◇ |
| Audit committee chair | ◇ |
| Audit committee member | ◇ |
| Compensation committee chair | ◇ |
| Compensation committee member | ◇ |
| Nominating and governance chair | ◇ |
| Nominating and governance member | ◇ |
Equity is delivered as SEUs (Share Equivalent Units).
Disclosed peer group
The companies this board named as its compensation comparison group. The list is disclosure; the comparison is analysis.
Fiscal 2025
- Adobe ADBE
- Bank of America BAC
- BlackRock BLK
- BNY BNY
- Capital One Financial COF
- Citigroup C
- Goldman Sachs GS
- IBM IBM
- JPMorgan Chase JPM
- Mastercard MA
- Morgan Stanley MS
- Nike NKE
- PayPal PYPL
- PepsiCo PEP
- Salesforce CRM
- Starbucks SBUX
- U.S. Bancorp USB
- Uber UBER
- Verizon VZ
- Visa V
- Wells Fargo WFC
Say-on-pay history
Shareholder support for the compensation program, by year.
| Year | Meeting | Support | Votes for | Votes against | Abstentions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | May 5, 2026 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2024 | April 29, 2025 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2023 | May 6, 2024 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2022 | May 2, 2023 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2021 | May 3, 2022 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2020 | May 4, 2021 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2019 | May 5, 2020 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
| 2018 | May 7, 2019 | = | ◇ | ◇ | ◇ |
Chief executive pay ratio
As calculated and reported by the company.
Ratio
◇
Median employee compensation
◇
Chief executive total compensation
◇
What this page does not include
Everything above is a fact American Express disclosed, and it is free. Everything below is our analysis of those facts, and it is not.
Peer benchmarking
Where American Express sits against its disclosed peers — percentile position by role and by pay element, and the ranking behind it. The disclosed peer group is free; comparisons across it are part of the Velarion platform.
Executive Compensation Report — $1,500Written compensation analysis
A read of the pay program as designed and as paid: incentive structure, goal rigor, the alignment between the committee's stated philosophy and what the numbers show.
Executive Compensation Report — $1,500Board and governance analysis
Committee composition, independence, director pay positioning, and the governance provisions read together rather than listed.
Board Governance Report — $1,200Realizable pay
What the awards above are actually worth today against what they were valued at on grant, and what the gap says about the pay-for-performance link.
Velarion IntelligenceAdviser switching and vote outcomes
Two datasets covering compensation-adviser changes and what followed a contested vote. Both are part of the Velarion platform.
Enquire about accessMultiple companies at once
Cross-company views, cohort screens, and data export across the industries we cover. This page is one company; the platform is all of them.
Velarion IntelligenceCitations
Every figure on this page is cited to the document that reported it. Select any figure to see its citation.
306 figures on this page: 298 cited to the filing that reported them, 8 calculated from figures it prints.
298 cited to the filing
8 calculated from the filing
Documents cited
- 0000004962-26-000231Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0001104659-26-034163C.Y. L · COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS COMMITTEE & · Compensation of Directors · Grants of Plan-Based Awards · and 3 more sections
- 0000004962-25-000050
- 0001193125-25-054588Summary Compensation Table
- 0000004962-24-000038
- 0001193125-24-068837Summary Compensation Table
- 0000004962-23-000018Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
- 0001193125-23-073923Summary Compensation Table
- 0000004962-22-000030
- 0000004962-21-000032
- 0000004962-20-000057
- 0000004969-19-000038
Cite this data
This page is free to cite. Attribution we ask for:
Velarion, “American Express executive compensation, FY2022–FY2025.” https://intel.velarion.ai/comp/AXP (accessed 2026).
Short form: data: Velarion
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Specialty Finance rankings
Peers American Express discloses
The companies named in AXP's own disclosed peer group.
Terms on this page
Cite this data
APA
Velarion Company Intelligence. (2026). Velarion database: executive and board compensation data (Version 2026Q3) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22283854
BibTeX
@misc{velarionData2026,
author = {{Velarion Company Intelligence}},
title = {Velarion database: executive and board compensation data},
year = {2026},
version = {2026Q3},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.22283854},
publisher = {Zenodo},
url = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22283854}
}