American Express National Bank Routing Number: The Bank Behind the Card

American Express has a bank - and it has its own routing number

American Express National Bank's routing number is 124085066. Most people associate American Express exclusively with credit cards and charge cards, but Amex also operates a full FDIC-insured bank offering high-yield savings accounts, certificates of deposit, and checking accounts. This bank is a separate legal entity from the American Express card network, and it has its own routing number.

The distinction matters: your Amex credit card is issued by American Express (the card network and issuer), while your Amex high-yield savings account is held at American Express National Bank (the depository institution). These are different businesses with different regulatory frameworks, even though they share a brand name. The routing number 124085066 belongs specifically to the bank.

Why Amex

American Express National Bank is chartered in Utah, which is reflected in the 124 prefix of its routing number - corresponding to the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco's Salt Lake City processing center. Utah has become a popular chartering state for financial institutions because of its favorable regulatory environment. Several other digital-first banks, including Ally Bank and Goldman Sachs' Marcus, are also chartered there.

The bank originally operated under the name American Express Centurion Bank before rebranding to American Express National Bank. Despite name changes, the routing number has remained consistent at 124085066.

What the routing number covers - and what it doesn

Routing number 124085066 is used for all American Express National Bank deposit products: high-yield savings accounts, CDs, checking accounts, and any ACH or direct deposit transactions involving those accounts. It is not used for credit card payments - when you pay your Amex credit card bill, you provide the routing number of your external bank, not the Amex bank routing number.

This is a common source of confusion. If you have both an Amex savings account and an Amex credit card, they live in entirely separate systems. Your savings account uses routing number 124085066. Your credit card has a separate account number with no routing number at all, because credit cards do not use the ACH network.

Finding your American Express National Bank routing number

Log into your American Express savings or checking account at americanexpress.com (separate from the credit card login portal) and navigate to account details. The routing number 124085066 is displayed alongside your account number. You can also find it in the Amex mobile app under your banking accounts - note that the app shows both card accounts and bank accounts, so make sure you are looking at the banking section.

Amex deposits vs. Amex cards: a regulatory primer

American Express is unusual in the financial industry because it operates as both a card network (like Visa or Mastercard) and an issuing bank simultaneously. Most credit card networks do not issue cards directly to consumers - Visa and Mastercard cards are always issued by separate banks. Amex issues its own cards and runs its own network, which is why it can offer unique perks like Membership Rewards points.

The bank side of the business, governed by the OCC as a national bank, is subject to entirely different regulations than the card network. This dual structure is part of why American Express has historically been able to offer competitive savings rates - the deposits fund lending operations that complement the card business.

How Slash streamlines business finances beyond cards

American Express has long understood that businesses need both payment cards and deposit accounts working together. Slash unifies that concept into a single platform built specifically for companies - combining business deposit accounts, unlimited virtual and physical cards, real-time spend management, and automated expense tracking. No juggling separate logins for your cards and your bank account.