American Airlines picks Citi as sole credit card partner, drops Barclays

American Airlines has completed a long-awaited credit card deal with Citigroup, dropping its other partner, Barclays.

The airline said Thursday that it expects payments it receives from its co-branded credit card and other partners to grow 10% a year. In the 12 months through Sept. 30, American brought in $5.6 billion from these deals.

American said it would start transitioning its Barclays cardholders to Citi in 2026 but didn’t provide details.

Citi will take over credit card sign-up promotions such as those on flights and at airports, American said.

The airline’s current partnerships stem from its 2013 merger with US Airways.

CNBC reported in September that the airline was in talks with Citi to make the bank its exclusive credit card partner.

Co-branded deals are crucial for airlines. Carriers sell frequent flyer miles to banks, bringing in billions of dollars and driving profits for airlines. In return, banks get a captive audience of consumers who are incentivized to swipe the cards not only for travel but everyday purchases as well.

Delta Air Lines outearned American in its co-branded credit card program. Last year, Delta brought in nearly $7 billion from its partnership with American Express, and the carrier expects that to grow to $10 billion in the long term.

American shares were up more than 6% in premarket trading after the company unveiled the new Citi deal and raised its revenue forecast for the fourth quarter.

Correction: American Airlines made its announcement on Thursday. A previous version of this story misstated the day.