Kanoo & American Express announce two new agreements

Under the terms of the Foreign Exchange agreement, Kanoo will acquire full ownership of 12 American Express Foreign Exchange Services locations, 10 in the UK and two in France, which will operate under a Kanoo brand name. The deal does not include any of the Foreign Exchange Services which American Express operates in airports in the UK and France.

'As the world's largest travel network, with more than 100 years in the travel market, we are delighted to be expanding our relationship with Kanoo and look forward to servicing our customers with them,' said Paul Hargreaves, VP - Global Foreign Exchange Services, American Express.

In a separate contract, the 18 American Express consumer travel locations in the United Kingdom will become part of the Kanoo / American Express Travel partnership. Kanoo will invest in the business, which will continue to operate under the American Express brand.

'This acquisition represents a tremendous milestone in Kanoo's long and distinguished history,' said Mr Abdulla Kanoo, Group Chairman of the Kanoo group of companies.

'For the first time, Kanoo Travel will have an ownership presence in Europe, in what is the first expansion outside of our traditional markets. Making this move, with the support of the American Express brand, is particularly exciting. We are very proud to be working with such a long-standing and recognized service brand. American Express has given us a competitive edge throughout the Middle East. Now, we have the opportunity to extend this relationship in Europe, creating even more benefit for our mutual customers.'