Last week it emerged that both Delta & United were considering selling miles to their credit card partners in advance at a discount. Today Hilton issued a SEC filing (confirmed by American Expess here) that included they had presold American Express $1 billion worth of Hilton points. The relevant part of the SEC filing is as follows:
In April 2020, we pre-sold Hilton Honors points to American Express for $1.0 billion in cash. American Express and their respective designees may use the points in connection with the Hilton Honors co-branded credit cards and for promotions, rewards and incentive programs or certain other activities as they may establish or engage in from time to time. We will use the proceeds from the Hilton Honors points sale for working capital, general corporate and other purposes.
It’s unclear what discount was provided to American Express on these points. It will also be interesting to see if we see increased sign up and spending offers as a result of this purchase or not.
