Help Africa with an American Express Red credit card

It you want to do something good with your credit card then you would do well to consider American Express RED.

American Express has launched American Express RED, an ethical credit card which is part of a new economic initiative titled Product RED, created and launched by debt campaigner Bono and Bobby Shriver, Chairman of DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa). It is designed to raise funds to help to support HIV/AIDS programmes in Africa.

Part of a wide-ranging initiative including such products as mobile phones, RED is a union of the world’s leading companies who have made a commitment to channel a portion of profits from sales of specially-designed products to positively impact the lives of women and children affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa. As a founding member of Product RED, American Express was one of the first brands to create a bespoke RED product, in the form of the American Express RED credit card.

American Express RED is the first credit card targeted at ‘Conscience Consumers’. These are consumers who are willing to use the ‘power of their pocket’ to effect social change and make decisions about purchasing from brands based on their social, ethical and environmental values. Research estimates that in the UK alone there are currently 1.5m Conscience Consumers and predicts that this figure will rise to 3.9m by 2009.

Available from the beginning of March, American Express RED serves as the membership card of the RED community. American Express is offering to donate, on Card members’ behalf, a minimum of 1% of every pound spent on the Card to the Global Fund-financed programs, increasing to 1.25% on additional spending above £5,000 annually. Everyone is able to make a real difference by simply using their plastic as normal to make everyday purchases. American Express RED will donate another £5 on behalf of Card members who use the Card in the first month.

The Card is fee free, made of red plastic with the American Express Red design. It offers an APR of 12.9% and a balance transfer rate of 5.9%. In the spirit of the RED brand, which demands that products are desirable to consumers as well as generating donations to the cause, American Express has added a number of benefits tailored to meet the lifestyle needs of Card members. These include:

- Online RED fraud guarantee

- 24 hour RED credit card replacement

- Online RED account access

- REDdeals, which will include hand picked discounts and exclusive access to must-have entertainment and retail events.

- REDpass, which, every three months, awards one Cardmember the opportunity to do something bespoke and extraordinary.

- A range of security benefits such as: travel accident insurance, purchase protection, and refund protection.

You can find our more about the American Express Red Credit Card and where to get it by clicking on this