New Wave Of American Express Account Shutdowns Resurfaces In 2026, Should You Be Worried?

March 27, 2026

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New Wave Of American Express Shutdowns
Should You Be Worried?
The Pundit’s Mantra
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If you’ve been aggressively maximizing your American Express cards, then you should proceed with caution. A new wave of American Express account shutdowns is underway and this one is targeting a very specific group of card members, based on new data points from US Credit Card Forum and Reddit. Let me break down exactly what’s happening and what it means for you.

New Wave Of American Express Shutdowns

Reports started surfacing on March 26, 2026 that American Express has begun another round of account closures. This isn’t the first time Amex has done this, there was a similar wave not too long ago. However, the pattern is starting to become very familiar.

The shutdowns appear to be targeting card members involved in resale activity and buying groups, with a particular focus on international spend. In other words, if you’ve been using your Amex card to buy large volumes of goods for resale, especially across borders, then you may face the ire of Amex’s RAT (Rewards Abuse Team).

Discussion threads on Reddit’s r/churning and USCardForum are already filling up with data points from affected card members, hinting at a common thread that Amex is clearly tracking and flagging certain type of activity.

Should You Be Worried?

If you’re a regular card member using your Amex for everyday business or personal spending, you almost certainly have nothing to worry about. These shutdowns are not random. Amex is going after people who are indulging in a type of behavior in a specific niche, that too at scale.

But if any of the following sounds like you, it’s time to pay attention:

You participate in buying groups where members pool purchases to hit spend thresholds
You’re running significant international transactions through your Amex cards
You’re buying inventory for resale and putting it all on Amex

The Pundit’s Mantra

Just to recap, if you’re participating in large buying groups internationally and running very high spend across your Ameircan Express cards, then you may invite the wrath of Amex’s RAT. However, for everyone else who simply puts regualr spend on their cards and pays off their bills on time, there’s nothing to worry about.

Also, bear in mind that these shutdowns happen in waves. Clearly, Amex is looking for a specific type of customer that they want to boot out of the system. For most regular customers, these shutdowns shouldn’t be a reason to worry at all, if you’re just putting regular organic spend.

Hat Tip to Doctor Of Credit for finding this

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