American Express Centurion (Black) Cardholder Review – India

By | August 11, 2017

The American Express Centurion Card from Amex is perhaps the most desirable piece of anodized titanium, an invitation-only charge card issued by American Express to platinum card holders after they meet certain criteria. This “secret” card is made for the wealthy few and so the benefits are in parallel to the lifestyle of the super rich.

This is the review contributed by an actual Amex Centurion Card holder in India. Here you go: I have held the American Express Centurion Card for three years now and here is my review of this card.

Amex Centurion

Joining Fee and Annual Fees of Amex (India) Centurion Card:

  • One Time Joining Fee: Rs. 2 Lakhs
  • Annual Fee: Rs. 2.5 lakhs
  • Supplementary cards are chargeable

This card is offered via invitation only and American Express has not explicitly mentioned anywhere as to what is the exact criteria one must meet before being eligible for this card. (more on this later)

Benefits of American Express Centurion Card:

Complimentary Memberships to:

  1. Hilton Hotels Diamond membership
  2. Accor Hotels Platinum membership
  3. Shangri La Inner Circle Gold membership
  4. British Airways Gold Membership
  5. Etihad Airways Gold membership

Other notable benefits includes:

  1. A Centurion Relationship Manager
  2. 24×7 access to Concierge service / Travel Desk
  3. 7 Amex Platinum Supplementary cards at no cost
  4. Special rates and deals at select hotels and restaurants globally (this usually includes some discount on room rates, free upgrades, early check in, late checkout and some credit to be availed at the dining outlets at the particular hotel).
  5. Free ‘Meet and Greet’ service every-time you book a Business class or First class ticket through American Express at 18 cities including London, Dubai, Singapore, etc. (great value)
  6. Unlimited Priority Pass access to airport lounges
  7. Travel Desk: They can usually help with applying for visas for entry into other countries
  8. ‘No limit’ on spending
  9. Limited time promotional offers on air tickets (for example 25% on Air India Business and First Class tickets)
  10. Low airfares compared to any other OTA’s (on economy class too)
  11. Many other benefits including golf/spa and others are also there.
  12. Foreign Currency Markup Fee: 3.5%+GST

Some of the above mentioned benefits can change from one year to the next.

The Concierge Service:

There is much hype surrounding the Centurion concierge service. There are a number of stories circulating on various forums about how the Centurion concierge has pulled off seemingly impossible tasks just to keep their clients happy. There is no way to verify any of these claims (at-least in India).

Some of the things that the Centurion card can definitely do is help you get tables at popular restaurants around the world on very short notice.

While the Centurion Concierge is quite highly regarded globally, from my personal experience I can tell you that the Indian team is not up to the mark, especially not after charging an eye popping R+ lacs of annual fees.

I have personally had many instances when I have called up the Centurion concierge and there have not been enough customer service staff to take my call. Even after leaving multiple messages to be called back, the team would not follow through. I have also had emails go unanswered for days. The one thing that the Concierge is quite good at is helping you book flight tickets.

Somehow I have found Centurion to have the best prices on flights 99% of the time.

Out-dated Technology:
Even though the Centurion is the most expensive credit card available, American Express is shockingly unable to do the simplest of tasks where technology is concerned.

For example, if a supplementary cardholder wants to execute an online transaction, they are unable to do so on their own, as the OTP will only be sent via SMS (not even email) only to the Primary cardholder.

Even for any regular transactions at a point of sales such as a restaurant/retail store/petrol station, the supplementary holder will not receive any email or SMS confirming their transaction, and this information will only go to the primary cardholder.

American Express Centurion Black Card – The REAL card

The CARD Material:

It is made of a very special Titanium material. It is quite thick, heavy and definitely feels very premium. The only problem is that in case you lose the card, it takes a couple of weeks to receive the replacement as it is not made in India (I believe it is sent from Australia).

How to get the Amex Centurion Card:

I have had the Platinum Charge Card for a number of years now. Prior to receiving the invitation for the Centurion card, i had made a large number of high value transactions on my Platinum card (probably in the range INR 3 Crores) in a short timeframe. – Of course I duly paid off the entire bill on time.

Tip: You can increase the chances if you hold Amex Platinum Charge card for 5 Years with good spends. Spends has to be in “luxury” or “non-business expense” category to be eligible for the personal card. You may chase Business variant if your expense is related to business.

Day to Day Experiences with Amex Black Card:

I have often presented this card while checking in at hotles or dining at high end restaurants. Many times people will comment how heavy and solid the card feels (due to the Titanium material).

The card is more iconic overseas, and in India very few people know the meaning and value of this card – so don’t expect to be treated like a celebrity everytime you flash it around.

Conclusion:

The Centurion card is more about vanity than anything else. Even after all the various perks and benefits given by the card, it is almost impossible to get back the value of the annual fees. Moreover, the highly underwhelming service provided by the concierge team makes matters worse.

The only way a user of this card can really extract true value is if they are flying EXTREMELY frequently (at least 20 international flights annually). Had the concierge service been better, I would have also recommended this card to busy individuals who could have delegated various tasks to the concierge team – but unfortunately in India this is not the case so far.


So guys, for most of us, this card stands nowhere in value compared to the super premium credit cards in India, even some of the most popular credit cards of all time has better benefits in some aspect or other. Though, we’ve to understand that this card is made only for the super rich and so are the eligibility & benefits aligned in that way.

For those wealthy few, they don’t need to chase the 5x or 10x programs to save money, infact, saving money isn’t a thing they look for as a primary benefit as they have enough already. What they need is to save “time” which is more important, especially during travel as this can make more “money” for them.

The free ‘Meet and Greet’ service every-time you book a Business class or First class ticket through Amex – is indeed a lot of value for that type of traveler as they seem to help you through immigration, etc which saves a lot of time. For most others, its very hard to get the value for the fee paid.

  • Editor’s Rating: 3.5/5 [yasr_overall_rating]

Would you opt for one if you get an invite to American Express Centurion Card? If i get, i would – Atleast to add some titanium piece to my credit card collection. What about you? 🙂

P.S. Did i miss something? Feel free to ask in comments below, i’ll try my best to have a word with the card holder and update the article accordingly.

Author: Siddharth

Helping Indians to choose right credit cards, pick right offers and enjoy luxury vacations for less. Day & night exploring the spiritual reality of our human existence.

91 thoughts on “American Express Centurion (Black) Cardholder Review – India

  1. Captain Bishuddha Bharatiya

    Wow wow wow. You meet with a Centurion card holder. Amazing .

    Reply
  2. Srikrishna Raajan

    OTP/Transaction SMS section of centurion card seems a little unbelievable for me as my basic supplementary card does provide them separately.
    This is a great eye-opening article for those who are unaware of this card. Thanks to the Author and the editor of this article.

    Reply
    1. samarth

      that’s a lie as i am a supp card holder of centurion and i get separate otp on my personal email and phone, thou both will be different but will work for same transaction. maybe the person had his primary holders number updated as only a primary holder will be able to make the changes to the supp card even without his knowledge, like my father has done on my younger brothers supp card.
      It’s a lie. i will give this card 5***** , waiting when i will get an invitation for the same.

      Reply
  3. Srikrishna Raajan

    If anyone working with Amex following this website. You had a big blow from the most prestigious card’s member on your company’s service. It is time to escalate this feedback to the authorities and revise/improve the necessary services.

    Reply
  4. Praveen Perumalla

    Under benefits, it is written that seven supplementary cards are available at no cost. But under the annual fees it is written that supplementary cards are chargeable. Which is correct?

    Reply
    1. Siddharth Post author

      Praveen,
      1. Supp. Centurion cards are chargeable, but
      2. 7 Supp “Plat charge cards” are free
      So you can spoil the entire family with Plat charge cards 😀

      Reply
      1. Praveen Perumalla

        Thanks for the clarification, Sid.

        Well done in getting a genuine review. Probably the first ever I read of such a premium card.

        Reply
        1. Siddharth Post author

          Glad i was able to help!

          Credit goes to the cardholder who’s kind enough to share his review 🙂

          Reply
      2. Pranav

        What are the charges for the supplementary centurion cards?

        Reply
    2. Rakesh Yadav

      7 Platinum cards are free but if you order Centurion cards as supplementary. Charges would apply.

      Reply
  5. Vyom aggarwal

    I have Amex gold charge card and OTP for online transactions goes to supplementary card holders as well if they wish

    Reply
    1. Siddharth Post author

      Yes, but it seems Centurion card is configured in a unique way which isn’t allowing this to happen.

      Reply
      1. Rakesh Yadav

        It is not correct. Contact details can be updated for supplementary card holder so they can receive OTP. While applying supplementary card, primary member would have entered their number in contact.

        Reply
      2. Pranay Reddy

        We had the same issue for the Amex platinum card. But got the supplementary card holders details updated by calling the concierge. (Primary card holder needs to initiate this)

        Reply
  6. ND

    Thanks Sid. Keep up the good work.

    Great to have this review. Very little is available about this card and customer treatment varies significantly country to country.

    Reply
  7. Ram

    This is exactly the kind of content that makes you stand out from the crowd Sid. Keep going!

    Reply
  8. Saravanan R

    Very useful info. Paying that much amount as annual fee and not having proper team for the card holder is really bad.

    As of the otp issue, even sbi started offering otp to be delivered to the add on card and it can be changed in their website itself. It shows how amex poorly manages Indian amex.

    But if these issues sorted out, it would be the best card for ultra rich ppl.

    Reply
  9. Abhishek Roy

    One thing that I missed reading in the review is that there is no mention of Reward point rate. Is there any? Benefit of spending? I know it might not matter to the card holder but just for the information.

    Reply
    1. Siddharth Post author

      I’ve asked that, i’m yet to receive the info. Will update as soon as i get it.

      Reply
  10. Sahil

    Great review and very in line with my research on this card from friends and family that have it. Most of which are abroad hence their take on it are more positive thanks to the brilliant concierge services provided such as getting seats to sold out sports events or reservations at the best restaurants last minute. None of that works in India, the “Super Rich” have their personal contacts to open these doors, Amex’s contacts can’t compare.
    I evaluated the Centurion in more detail recently when I had to decide whether I should retain my Platinum Charge card or not. I was only keeping it as I would eventually become eligible for the centurion but finally decided it’s not worth it. Instead, I have cancelled my Platinum charge card and shifted to Infinia and loving it!
    I don’t agree with your comment that saving money is not a priority and Centurion saves you time. I have mentioned Infinia point benefits to more than 2 centurion holder and they have been envious. One of them even mentioned that he couldn’t even get it when he tried ! So HDFC Infinia might well be more hard to get than a Centurion. Moreover, the Amex concierge is not good in India, the review says it and my experience with Platinum Charge card concierge haven’t been good either in fact it has made me waste time more than save. Their rates have not been the better, only at par with my travel agent or other websites. The hotel upgrades are not guaranteed and
    The only thing the Centurion is good for is SNOB value. If you are looking to make a statement that I have arrived in life then this is THE card for you. However, I personally find it very in your face flashy and new money appeal. Personally, I would rather EARN 5 lakhs in reward points using Infinia,etc than PAY that in fees for a card that only yells out “Look at me, I am rich”

    Reply
    1. Siddharth Post author

      Well said. Yes, there are many cards that can get better value, not just limited to Infinia.

      This is more of a luxury item. And when we talk about luxury, only thing that matter is the “affordability”. More the cost, more the “flashy” part goes up but not necessarily the value in parallel to the cost. 🙂

      Reply
  11. Vikram

    I’m afraid some of the terms are being used interchangeably here. There are supplementary cards and then there are add-on cards. They are not the same. Supplementary cards will be issued in the primary card holders name itself. These are just cards issued alongside the primary card if the customer wishes to have separate cards for different types of purchases. For example if one were on a official trip and will pay for all his official expenses himself and then later get those reimbursed. In this case he/she can use one of the supplementary cards to make the official expenses. The primary card’s bill will have all expenses of itself + supplementary cards + add-on cards too. But there will also be a separate bill for the supplementary cards. This means that when they submit to their finance department they can just submit the bill of the supplementary card they used for official expenses. This way they don’t have to expose all their personal expenses unwillingly.

    The add-on cards on the other hand are cards that you can get for your family members. These will be issued directly in their names and though the primary card holder’s liable for all expenses on that card, these cards can still be linked to contact details of the member holding it.

    So supplementary cards will have OTPs reach only the primary card holder’s mobile. But add-on cards will have OTPs delivered to the contact provided for that card.

    I used to have an Amex Kingfisher First card. The package itself came with a supplementary card (in my name). This was free. However add-on cards in the names of family members, if needed, were provided at additional cost. I believe that this is still the case with Amex at least. If not then maybe the thin line vanished.

    Reply
  12. Vikram

    It all depends on the mindset of people and the banks play accordingly. In most countries there’s no concept of a free credit card at all and in some just very very few options. In many countries (I think including US) if you have a Visa Infinite/Signature or a Mastercard World Elite/World card and rent a car with that then the car by default is covered by insurance against accidents and some other misfortunes. And these high tier cards provide purchase protection too. In India they don’t, especially since there’s much demand only for free credit cards. People don’t mind these services not being offered.

    As for Amex, they are the only card providers in India that offer purchase protection (not sure if it’s available on all cards but definitely on some like Platinum Reserve). They are also the only ones that unconditionaly offer zero lost card liability after reporting a stolen card and a maximum of just Rs 1000 before reporting. And they are the fastest at replacement card anywhere in the world. I’ve had people tell me that they received a card in just 2 – 5 days even when abroad. In Europe it does take a little longer. In comparison I know a person who had to travel several 100 miles to an SBI bank to get a replacement card and that too after a very tidious process.

    Their platinum reserve credit and gold charge cards come with points that never expire which is again quite unique because with most other banks the points expire in 3 years. I do agree that thir rewards scheme is not the best though, still never expiring points are good thing.

    And their customer care is simply the best by far. HDFC has improved a lot in the last 4 years but still they’re no match. I’ve never had to call Amex customer care more than once ever for the same thing. And the customer care executives are very well informed. In comparison the average wait time for ICICI is easily close to 10 minutes, used to be even worse in the past.

    People who’ve been in emergency situations abroad have had great things to say about how Amex conceirage/travel assist services came in more than just handy. In comparison I and 4 of my colleagues have been through hell in such a situation abroad. We had an Axisbank traveller currency card and the management of the hotel couldn’t even reach the bank in days of trying. And all this happened when we were checking out, with just one day of visa left, it was certainly very distressing and embarrassing. To add to that we missed the flight next day and were stranded at the airport. We used the last of our coin reserves to call and inform our office and it took them more than 4 hours to load my card. All this while we had no clue what was going on. We just kept regularly trying to use the card to pay extra charges on rebooking in the next flight. All this happened in China which means the languages that we spoke was understood only by a very few around. But people with Amex corporate cards who’ve been in similar situations, had to simply call their assist services. Interim hotel booking, flight booking assistance etc all were provided by way of this service and they didn’t have to run from one end of the airport to another end several times like we did (Shanghai international airport had more than 26 counters each 150 – 200 feet wide and we had run across at least 23 of them to and fro almost 5 times). Still most small companies stick to cheaper alternatives coz they get more attention from these other banks that they don’t get from Amex. But most bigger companies stick to Amex and don’t turn any other direction.

    All that said, it’s still not the most beneficial card for all. If you are a frequent traveller then the you could make great use of some of their cards. I think Siddharth itself is one such. 🙂 My first company’s chairman had a Platinum Charge Card, back when it was purely invite only. The annual fee was 50k plus taxes. But he used to tell me that on the average he gets back well over 2 lakhs in benefits every year out of it.

    HDFC Infinia card / Diners Black etc are the only cards I would compare with Amex in terms of quality and luxury. They are of better value in terms of rewards, lack a little bit in customer care but that is acceptable. I’ve not heard much about ICICI Diamant but that may be a good comparison candidate too. There maybe others that are better in terms of rewards but beyond a level that alone won’t suffice.

    Reply
    1. Siddharth Post author

      The comment itself worth posting as an article.

      Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge with us Vikram. It should help lot others!

      Reply
      1. Vikram

        Thank you Siddharth! There’s one more thing that’s different about Amex cards. Unlike Visa/Master/Dinersclub cards which have the pin verification happen at network level, in case of Amex it happens at the terminal level. If you were to use Visa/Master/DC card after you insert the card and enter the amount and proceed the machine connects with the network of the issuing bank through the Visa/Master/DC network and then the pin is asked for. Once you key it in the transaction is authorized and completed.

        In case of Amex the pin is stored in the chip itself and in order to negotiate with the bank itself the pin is needed. This is why you can never change the pin of an Amex card. With cards issued by Amex there is no pin fixed by default. You need to create an online account and then set a pin for yourself. This pin will get written to the chip in your card on the first transaction at a POS terminal. So the first transaction can happen without a pin. For further transactions the pin must be entered or else the chip won’t provide details required for the transaction. And upon entering the pin you will immediately see a “PIN OK”. In case of Amex cards issued by other banks (at least ICICI) the pin is already written into the chip of the card when it is couriered. So you can never change it. If you want to change the pin then you will have to contact the bank and have a new card with a new pin in its chip sent over to you.

        So while you may see an upfront message in the terminal if you try to use a DC card on a POS that doesn’t accept DC cards, the same terminal may ask for your pin and even display a “PIN OK” message. But the transaction will still not go through. You might see some strange error that’s not so explicit. If that happens just get back the Amex card and use a Visa/Master instead.

        Reply
        1. Siddharth Post author

          Yes, you’re right – PIN is programmed to chip after first swipe (in case of Amex proprietary cards)

          But i doubt about other bank issued Amex cards. When i requested for a PIN reset on my ICICI AMEX card, i got a new PIN physically mailed to me and i was able to use it without changing the card.

          Reply
          1. Vikram

            Oh is it? Which ICICI Amex card is that? I haven’t tried it but the instructions that I received with the card stated that every time I wanted a PIN reset they’ll send a new card. I haven’t tried it anyway and so can’t vouch for it.

          2. Siddharth Post author

            ICICI Jet Sapphiro Amex. However, the thing is, i didn’t use the first pin.

          3. Vikram

            You know what, I think you’re right. I checked the conditions again and looks like they won’t send a new card but just a new PIN. Don’t know what the mechanism is.

          4. AS

            ICICI has enabled the PIN change facility on Amex cards recently. You can call CC from your RMN to change PIN.

        2. Raghav Kalantri

          I am surprised no one including you have not mentioned Citi bank Prestige card. a lot of perks (Emergency assistance, lost card liability, great customer care comes standard.)

          Reply
        3. kamal

          I came here for some inspiration and wanted to touch upon only one point regarding Amex verification happens in pos machine itself instead of network.

          I recently swiped my Amex MRCC in Axis POS , took few minutes , POS gave network error(failed) , Amex app gave success notification(Weird!).
          This created a Pending entry in Amex app which vanished in 4 to 5 days from Amex app.

          So atleast in 2021 Amex MRCC , it needs network handshake for POS success

          Reply
    2. GS

      +1 on the general amex customer care being awesome.
      – I once had a delivery agent deliver a replacment card to me outside the international terminal.I had needed a replacement for a lost card urgently within 3-4 days I think and the delivery timeline was getting really close to an urgent travel date. The customer care service agents were very helpful in making sure I had a card before I boarded
      – i once lost my wallet on an international trip and my burner ran out of time.i had the hotel folks in us call the amex call centre in India give my name and email address and phone number and ask them to call me. The amex guys not only called me promptly but be also took to calling me atleast one a day till the replacement card arrived

      All this when all I held was an amex corporate card.. their service is simply outstanding.

      Reply
  13. MD saleem

    I am self employed with ITR of 10 lacs.

    What limit will i get on this card with the above income?

    Reply
    1. shalini mittal

      I believe they ask for 25 lacs for platinum charge card so this will be more higher

      Reply
  14. Rahul

    Hi, Amex does allow the PIN to be changed as per your preference. Trick is to do it within 24-48 hours of receiving the card.

    With add-on & all, I have some 5 Amex Card & all barring 1 have my preferred PIN.

    Only for one card, I was late in setting the PIN & now I am stuck with the default PIN they decided.

    Amex being Amex , kindly offered me to send in the replacement of the card in question, which I declined.

    Reply
    1. Siddharth Post author

      Do you mean 5 Amex Proprietary cards? Very much loyal to Amex! 🙂

      Reply
    2. Vikram

      Yes it does allow. But just once. After that you can only see the already set PIN and you can no longer change it.

      Reply
  15. Ashutosh

    this guy hasnt mentioned anything about airlines upgrades and hotel upgrades. one of the benefits i have heard is the compulsory upgrades from business to first and in hotels.

    Reply
  16. A Centurion Card holder

    Interesting write up. I have been a Centurion Card holder in two countries and can say that the service quality and benefits vary dramatically. As a matter of fact, the cost of the card also varies considerably.

    I travel internationally on average twice a month and spend at least 100 days in hotels. Trust me, I get the annual membership cost back many times over.

    I have a billionaire Friend who cannot justify the card because he only travels two or three times a year. Most of the dinners / hotels are paid for by his managers. He seldom needs to carry a wallet.

    It all depends on your lifestyle. Rich doesn’t mean you spend $100,000 every month necessarily.

    I would appreciate you do not publish my name or email.

    Reply
  17. Samir

    Hi
    One thing that I missed reading in the review is that there is no mention of Reward point rate. Is there any? Benefit of spending? I know it might not matter to the card holder but just for the information.

    Reply
  18. Srinjoy

    Hi,
    I have been offered this card recently.
    Just wanted to clarify that the joining fee is 7 lacs + GST and renewal is 2 lacs + GST.
    No extra joining benefits of 100000 reward points like that in Platinum Charged card.

    On Etihad they do a compulsory upgrade from Business to first class in Etihad.
    50% of on Oberoi Suites. etc

    1 more Centurion add on card and 5 other Platinum Charged card add ons are provided.

    Reply
    1. Siddharth Post author

      7L+GST 😱
      Are you sure that there is no joining benefit?

      Reply
      1. Srinjoy

        Yes Sid,
        They don’t give any additional joining fee benefits. 8.36 Lacs is the fee one pays for the exclusivity + premium factor. Almost like joining a club per se.
        The renewal is INR 2 lacs + GST.

        In their Platinum Charged card they charge 60K + gst but they gave me 100,000 reward points. Earlier I had taken 40K worth Taj vouchers.
        I am still not able to figure out as to how much the annual spend should be for the card to be even worthwhile with the fees charged in India.

        Reply
          1. Srinjoy

            Hi Praveen,
            Not sure as I prefer using the HDFC Infinia card generally for its acceptability and rewarding structure. (Off late the Axis Magnus card with 3X feature seems good too.)
            Maybe they studied few transactions or volumes of mine when I travel abroad. ( transaction could vary 5-10 lacs a month)
            Maybe they were earning quite a bit non their forex markup 😉
            On the income part they require at least ~ INR 75/ lacs per year minimum on the individual’s file.
            Hope this helps.

      2. Srinjoy

        Sorry for the late response Sid,
        Yes, had cross checked with the RM who had called.
        The card is targeted more at saving time and pampering you with the elite hotel memberships as a reward rather than stacking up points.
        Here the ‘value’ is the ‘Time’ and ‘Luxury’ rather than points.
        Whether the card is value for money ultimately depends on the end user.

        I do agree that most people in India don’t understand it when one flashes a Centurion card still.

        Reply
  19. raghav

    what is the maximum amount a person can spend in one billing cycle with this card? i hope not less than a cr. after paying lacs as joining fees.

    Reply
    1. Naresh

      It’s unlimited. You can spend INR 20 crores also. No problem. That’s the unique benefit of Amex Centurion.

      Reply
  20. Mohit Khanduja

    Update
    5 Oct 2019

    Joining Fees 5 Lakhs + GST
    Annual Fees 2 Lakhs + GST

    Mr Srinjoy is correct !!

    Reply
  21. Manoj

    I loves the Amex when I choose gold charge card but after upgradation to platinum charge card I just hate Amex. I paid 60000 plus Gst as joining fees and I was under a impression of having unlimited credit and spend more than one lakh every month for the initial 6 month. I paid all the bills on time and full amount paid every time. After 6 month my card got declined after usage of around 1 lakh. When I called Amex people they told me that my shadow limit is mere 100000 only. So I left the card because after paying such a huge amount like 60k plus tax there is no meaning to have this kind of poor limit. Waste of money. I prefer to have gold charge card.

    Reply
  22. Naresh

    Siddharth,

    Are there any cards in the market which have an unlimited limit like Amex Centurion? For instance, can you charge INR 10 crores on any card outside of Amex Centurion and be allowed the charge, by way of a hypothetical example?

    Reply
    1. Shivi

      Amex centurion has No Pre-Set Spending Limit which is different from Unlimited Shadow Limit. They’ll approve your transaction on a case-to-case basis.

      Reply
  23. Shiv Kumar Singh

    By the way Amex is giving joining fee waiver till 31st December 2020 on American Express Centurion…

    Reply
    1. Shri

      I understand its an invite only card, invite to existing Amex card holders, primarily Platinum.

      Is there a criteria apart from high spends on the plat card?

      Reply
  24. New at Centurion

    The fees has increased from this year, its 7 + 2.75 (Excluding GST)
    I have received the invitation for Centurion.

    Reply
    1. Kamal

      will it possible to elaborate on your journey and features of 2021 version of Black card sir?

      Reply
  25. Avid Reader

    I stumbled across this article at a recommendation of my friend and have a short story to add.

    My sister is differently abled and requires a wheelchair for movement. We were in a cruise at Freedom of the Seas (Bahamas) in 2017 or 2018 I think and her wheelchair battery malfunctioned and stopped working. This was a big setback as the wheelchair was heavy and it hindered her independent movement. I reached out to amex concierge for some help. The battery did not have a brand marking, so I just had a photograph that I was able to mail to the team. They located suppliers in carribean in 2 hours and had a replacement ready, and provided me the option of receiving it via heli transport (Freedom of the seas has a helipad on Deck, the cost ofcourse was to be borne by me) or I can collect it at the next port. I chose the second option, and had a local vendor and amex rep (not sure if he was amex employee) ready at the port and carried out the battery replacement there itself. They also brought another automated wheelchair in case it was not a battery fault (something that is very thoughtful). That day I realised the fee is worth it, and you should never look at the MR earning rate or offers as that can never give the centurion experience.

    Reply
  26. CenturionLover

    This blog is like a subreddit on credit cards. I was searching for centurion amex offers when i came across this. Great work

    The centurion has 3 variants

    Personal – Available in India
    Business – Only available through Global Transfer in India
    Corporate – Available in India

    I hold the personal centurion. I had a corporate centurion that I moved to Singapore when I transferred my company there

    The eligibility criteria for an invite is much hyped, usually if you have a corporate platinum the RM assigned to your company overlaps with the centurion program. The spend does matter, but so does the city. The median spends need to be crossed for the city for an eligible invite. In Mumbai the median spend was 2.1 cr a month for corporate cent in 2017, but was 87 lakh in Delhi. The category of spends also matter, so if you are in mining business and hope that the heavy insurances for labor and machinery on your personal plat would fetch an invite it wont happen.

    Ideally for corporate cent, the fastest way to invite is to dump travel to the travel desk of AMEX, and keep fingers crossed. I am into mining and owning couple of
    bars and restaurant. I had a discussion with my business plat RM in 2014 for a cent invite, and he told me that plat reps keep monitoring the card spends, and if the threshold
    is crossed they can make a referral (amex lingo for this is a CASE) to the centurion team. This is a tedious process that happens with a excel sheet, takes up to a quarter. Cent referrals add a large bonus to the kitty of corporate plat RM, so be assured that they will actively pester you till once you cross the threshold to “work with you to extend an exclusive invite to centurion”

    I had a gold charge before I jumped ship to plat again (I had a plat, fees was not worth it, downgraded to gold). I had some serious spends on Gold in ’13 AFAIK, with 12 Liebherr
    excavators charged to my gold charge card in 8 months (120000 EUR each (approx), a forex transaction, plus shipping to Vishakapattnam). I had a amex rep called me to confirm that spends on
    a gold charge card do not count towards centurion upgrade. I got a free upgrade to plat charge in some time, but mining ops were slow in ’13 end and ’14 due to policy changes and govt changes.
    In 17 the business picked again, and some more machinery was needed. I was able to charge a fleet of BharatBenz 3143 (or 3134, it was a new truck at that time, the bharatbenz brand was also new).
    They needed a RTGS, and I was adamant on swiping a card. Their sales rep and my amex rep were able to work out a deal in a month, and my card was to be charged by AMEX towards an escrow account that
    the dealer can withdraw from. (It was a weird arrangement that that time, and AMEX assured me it was the first they did in India, though it could also be a gimmick). While this transaction was in progress,
    my cent invite came through. It was not a metal card that came, a plastic card that I can recall, and some months later a metal card did arrive. Corporate cents get strong purchasing arrangements, in case you are wondering
    why would someone go through such lengths for purchasing mining equipment. I was offered some breathtaking insurance quotes by AMEX, and my rep worked with freight companies directly to arrange shipping which worked out cheaper that the dealer tie ups that such brands have in India.

    I started chasing the personal cent the same time, and my rep was on first name terms with me. At an amex event I discussed with a(another) rep how I hold the business cent, and am stuck with a platinum in India. He assured me that he would do a research and reach out to me with some update in 48 hours (he took my details in the event). Almost a week passed and even I forgot about the interaction. I received a call in some days with detailed analysis of my spends. My corporate travel was charged to my company, and he suggested that if I offload my personal travel to my plat travel desk they can probably make a case. He explained me in detail what kind of spends they look for, its more of a category thing and not anything to do with MDR or merchant charges. Spending 10M INR with the travel desk, and you can actually demand a cent invite if you don’t get one. There is another way to get cent in India, that is not well advertised (I suspect the public here is very savvy and most are aware). AMEX has banking relationships with banks and brokers (IL&FS, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse). Foreign banks always keep the exiting India, you need some strings are C level or some really high level in AMEX to get the exact banking tie ups. If you have a strong investment portfolio, the plat is free, and your bank and amex can reach and agreement to extend centurion at some discounted rates. (this is case to case, I have personally seen an IL&FS cent that was offered at a ridiculously low fee). I offloaded some travel purchases on my plat. My brother’s marriage was on the horizon, and I floated out 4 supp cards to the staff and event planners handling the wedding. It was some good spend on the categories they were looking for. A final way to get it if you desperately need a flex is called Bank Guarantee. BG for AMEX Plat(Corp) starts at 5 L minimum. The difference is that while Plat BG is basically a FD that is marked lien (you earn interest), cent BG is a bank transfer to a guarantee account that you get back after you surrender. Typical BG is 10cr for cent, and that’s 10cr you gave away for 0% to get a piece of card. Not recommended unless you have bad credit reports and yet make to Forbes. I am aware that BG cards have limit capped at 70% of the BG and have reduced free, not sure how much.

    Final nail in the coffin was with a large ticket purchase that I was eyeing for some time. I was working with a company called Arrow Aircraft for a used airplane from 2011-2013 range, for company purchase. Add depreciation, and I had a good offer from a private charter service that was offering me a fixed monthly rental over and above the flight hours. I would have been in a net profit on a good aircraft for 2 years of ownership, post which I wanted to sell it. Arrow gave poor aircrafts like Cessna 172, and unreasonable prices, would not take AMEX and did not give ATF, hangar and maintenance packages. I finally reached out to my business cent concierge, and was arranged a dealer based in South Africa. The aircrafts were good, and the dealer and an agreement with Mumbai airport, and lifetime free access to Private Lounge at the Mumbai airport. The guy did not accept amex for the full payment, and wanted a cut for the amount he would accept from a charge card. Since my rep had brokered the deal, he eventually agreed to draw my card towards an amex account and I would be provided an equivalent cashiers cheque in SA local currency, which was a sweet deal. I was charged 1.5% as a free, but the deal was sweet if I consider the amount I lose in forex with bank transfers and IT headaches. I got my cent invite post this.

    Just a note that cent RMS are pretty good if you use them for right purposes and your account is fat enough that they lose risking business. If you think they will get you reservations, tickets or flower deliveries, you are in the wrong boat. You should have enough numbers on your speedial for these things. The right use for such things is the purchase agreements they can work out, especially in Mainland China, where they seem to have magical arrangements to bypass all remittance restrictions through their trifecta banking setup of China(Mainland), HongKong and Macau. Another thing is that you can demand an RM in cent program (both personal and corporate), so if you know how to pull strings in AMEX India, you can get a list of AMEX reps with strong track records and demand them to be your dedicated rep.

    Some common questions:

    Reward Rate: 6 RP per 200 INR. You get very frequent 2X offers. I have never tallied the points, but am sure you dont get anything for less than 200 RS swipe.

    Supp Cards: 1 Supp card is free for another card memeber. You can request 1 additonal card for business expenses (on personal cent, corporate cent has paid additional members)

    Forex Charges: Its not a 0% forex rate like US. I think its 3.5% or 2.99 %

    Merchant charging 3%-3.5%- How should I handle that ?
    I am very adamant I wont give any merchant favours, and my cent RMs know that pretty well. I went to hundai in ’19 to buy a Creta, and the dealer wanted 3.5%(AMEX) or 2.5%(VISA/MC) of the charges which negated the offers I got. I could I have given a RTGS, but I perfer dipping AMEX.I reached out to Ultima and Cent RMs to broker a deal rather than wasting time (the sales guys are hard bent). The cent RM got me 2 sweet options – either get 1.5X RP or get 2 year insurance. I picked the former.

    Fee: Is not waived off, renewal offers are great. You can recover 12L an year approx in you are in the correct TG

    Holy Trifecta in India for me: AMEX Cent, Corporate Cent and Citi Ultima

    Largest Purchase: Embraer Phenom 100 (Personal Cent), Machinery worth a million EUR over some months (corporate, cannot recall single largest purchase)

    Reply
    1. Siddharth Post author

      Thank you very much for sharing these priceless information!

      Reply
    2. Captain Bishuddha Bharatiya

      The most lengthiest comment in cardexpert history and still I want more. That’s the beauty of your article man. I would love to read some more.

      Reply
    3. Abhi

      Such a great insight into a card so few hold.
      It seems you are regularly able to charge business spends on personal card and vice versa? Amex has no qualms with that??

      Reply
      1. CenturionLover

        Charging business spends to personal plat has some rules, and as long as accounting is fine amex does not mind if you charge reimbursements. What amex is strictly against is manufactured spending, gambling and buying too many gold coins/bullion. However I never charge personal expenses on my corporate cent, thats too much of a headache. Also all great offers are not applicable on corporate cent. There was a offer going on for 40% flat discount on charged amount on Bottega Veneta, it would have been a sin to use corp cent and let go of the discount

        Reply
          1. AbhiKohli

            Me too 😀
            For the next person to save on tip to google, its an Italian luxury fashion brand 😀

    4. Ravin

      Simply super info! Loved reading it and understanding the unknown side (to me atleast) of Amex!! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
    5. Jay

      New life goals!! :D, thanks for this. It’s nice to get a glimpse of the life of the elite.

      Reply
    6. Suraj

      How does one qualify for a CITI ULTIMA. What are the perks of having it over the Centurion?

      Reply
    7. Rajesh

      Wow. Not that it would ever apply to me, but I got a couple questions after reading that.

      Considering all that help with business, do they charge you separately for helping you with such large deals?
      How much would they consider too much in terms of concierge requests?
      Would the RMs expect anything from you in return?

      If, say, you found some other card offering a lot more return on spends (as cashback maybe) and you started using that card exclusively, and used Centurion only for the concierge services, would they refuse to renew your card? IE. Can they deny you the card in future citing non-usage?

      Reply
      1. MT

        If you use centurion for only concierge services , then they will be more than happy to pocket the fees from you , only when you are able to extract more tha double the fees worth of services/benefits from the cent ,then its worth it … plus i have heard for personal centurion , they do a background check on you before even inviting for the card once the referral is passed

        Reply
        1. Rajesh

          That fee is hardly anything for UHNIs who’re looking for exclusivity. So, extracting returns aside, do they let you continue to keep the card? I mean, if it’s only fees AMEX is after, it wouldn’t be that difficult to get.

          Reply
      2. CenturionLover

        They don’t charge any fee, if any third party is involved they usually charge for that. Also I never faced the restriction that I have to pay third party charges through amex card itself. Cent does not have any great spending benefits apart from some usual offers, It offers some great flexibility around how much I can spend and is excellent alternative to cash. Unfortunately there is no other comparable charge card benefits. I pay my dues in full, so credit cards offer no convenience. Large transfers or cash withdraws from banking are a big pain and slow process, and most people I know prefer AMEX for this reason. Even plat is a very powerful card, and I know guys who have gone as high as 35 cr (on a single swipe) on that easily (I shared a video on this page, in that you can see Manoj confirming that plat users have charged as high as 15 cr on a single transaction). Compared to some credit cards I hold which have high limits and gimmicks like NPSL, but none match the spending power I get on cent (or even plat).

        Regarding how much is too much, cent concierge can deny some requests or say that are not able to fulfil. What offers much better experience is Citi’s concierge desk. Recently Patek Philippe Nautilus was discontinued, the the news was leaked before company announcement. This led to purchase frenzy as the resale value was more than 5 times the sticker price. For those who aren’t watch savvy, some Nautlius models have a 8 year waiting list to get on the 8 year waiting list (yes thats correct, read that again). I had reached out to amex and Citi teams to find me these watches. While amex guys were unaware of what exactly I was asking for and needed some time, Citi had a in house team of specialists that facilitate watch purchases and quickly got me on some waiting lists (people who wanted to trade their waiting list spots for money). Same for artwork. Citi is out of the league and has some pretty specialised concierge departments for weird requests.

        Reply
        1. Rajesh

          Wow, never would’ve expected Citi to have better concierge than AMEX. 👌🏽

          Reply
        2. Shivi

          Can you please write about Ultima Infinite @CenturionLover?
          I have been curious about that card ever since i saw a “farmer” from Udupi swiping it at my place a few years back.

          Reply
    8. Gagan

      Wow – such a detailed and insightful reply by CenturionLover

      Reply
    9. CenturionLover

      youtube.com/watch?v=g8K1Kl5K9Xg

      A video on one bank co branded amex in India, the IIFL One Amex Plat. This was supposed to be the hot piece of metal in 2020 for IIFL one customers, but COVID-19 changed things. The fee for this is waived off for a lot of clients, and yes there is a cent as well, but was not able to find a pic. Unlike US and UK, where uploading and clearly displaying MITC for all cards is mandatory which helps us to understand perks, cent documentation is completely missing from Indian amex site

      Reply
    10. Devaraj

      Hey we would love to hear what’s your update on black card now and share your experience whether it has become good or bad and also about your new high spendings also

      Reply
  27. Jay Nandu

    This is just crazy. Thank you for sharing it. To get first hand knowledge from an Indian on how to use this card is just amazing.

    Reply
  28. Praveen Katiyar

    @CenturionLover, thanks for such a detailed post.
    @Sid, I am happy to see such readers and post on cardexpert
    Keep up the good work.

    Reply
  29. Vishnu

    Reading few comments here.. got me thinking about new life goals! woah! hats off to these elites and their risk taking abilities.

    Reply

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