The short answer

American Express plans to cut about 5% of its workforce, or about 3,500 employees, according to what the company told investors on October 23, 2026, as reported by the Associated Press. The AP described it as the company's first major round of job cuts in roughly a decade. The cuts are job losses, and American Express took a $336 million pretax restructuring charge in the third quarter to pay for them, per its third-quarter earnings release.

What happened

CEO Stephen Squeri disclosed the plan on the company's third-quarter earnings call on Friday, October 23, 2026, per Reuters and CNBC. The earnings release, filed the same day as an exhibit to a Form 8-K, shows a restructuring charge of $336 million before tax and $253 million after tax, which it describes as related to efficiency initiatives. An 8-K is a report a public company must file when something important happens. The release says part of the gain from selling the company's stake in Global Business Travel Group was used to fund the restructuring. CNBC reported that American Express had almost 77,000 employees at the end of 2025. MarketScale reported that Squeri gave a headcount of about 78,000 to Bloomberg Television.

Who is affected

American Express has not said which teams, locations or seniority levels are affected. CNBC, the AP and Reuters did not report a breakdown, and MarketScale noted the announcement gave no breakdown by function, geography or seniority. No state WARN notice for this round appears in the sources used here. A WARN notice is a filing an employer makes with a state when it plans a large layoff at one site. The 3,500 figure is the AP's report of what the company told investors; CNBC and Reuters reported only the 5% share.

When it takes effect

The company has not published a timeline for the cuts, and none of CNBC, Reuters or the AP reported one. The restructuring charge was recorded in the third quarter of 2026, which ended September 30, per the earnings release.

What the company said

Squeri told investors the cuts are about making the company more efficient and are not a sign of a downturn in its business, per the AP. CNBC reported that Squeri said the charge was meant to improve efficiency and that the company needed to become more agile to speed up innovation. CFO Christophe Le Caillec told CNBC the restructuring is meant to make the company "leaner, more agile, and also to prepare for AI." He said American Express wants to reduce management layers and widen spans of control before automating processes, per CNBC. The AP reported that the same quarter brought a profit of $3.71 billion, up 28% from a year earlier, and that the company raised its full-year adjusted profit forecast to $17.60 to $17.90 per share.

Earlier cuts at American Express

The AP reported that this is the company's first major round of job cuts in roughly a decade. The sources used here report no other layoff rounds at American Express in the past two years.

Questions people ask

How many jobs is American Express cutting?

About 5% of its workforce, roughly 3,500 employees, according to what the company told investors on October 23, 2026, as reported by the Associated Press. CNBC and Reuters reported the 5% figure, and CNBC put the year-end 2025 headcount at almost 77,000.

Which American Express teams are affected?

The company has not said. CNBC, Reuters and the AP did not report a breakdown by team or location, and MarketScale noted the announcement gave no breakdown by function, geography or seniority.

What reason did American Express give?

CEO Stephen Squeri said the cuts are about efficiency, not a business downturn, per the AP. CFO Christophe Le Caillec told CNBC the goal is a leaner, more agile company that is prepared for AI, with fewer management layers and wider spans of control.

How much will the layoffs cost American Express?

The company recorded a $336 million pretax restructuring charge in the third quarter of 2026, $253 million after tax, per its earnings release. The release says part of the gain from selling its stake in Global Business Travel Group funded the restructuring.

Does American Express offer severance?

The company has not published severance terms for this round, and none of the sources used here reports them.

Sources