American Express To Acquire Resy

To build on its growing suite of digital-first benefits that go beyond rewards and points, American Express announced on Wednesday (May 15) that it has inked an agreement to acquire the Resy reservation platform. The deal, which is expected to be completed this summer, is part of the company’s aim to become an essential part of the digital lives of card members and merchants, the company said in an announcement.

American Express Senior Vice President of Global Loyalty and Benefits Chris Cracchiolo said in the announcement, “Resy was created to both connect people who love dining out with new, notable and hard-to-get-into restaurants across the globe, as well as help restaurants’ businesses grow and thrive. Similarly, American Express has strong relationships with premium dining partners and restaurants across the globe, and provides our card members with access to incredible dining experiences through our exclusive benefits and programs.”

Resy, which was started in 2014, features a suite of table management, CRM and booking technology for restaurants. It comes with a consumer-facing reservation app and website. The platform works with roughly 4,000 restaurants in 10 countries and 154 U.S. cities, and seats more than 2.6 million diners a week.

The acquisition is said to build upon a number of others the company has made in the dining, travel and lifestyle space. In January of 2018, American Express announced that it had acquired personal travel assistant app Mezi, a service that helps people plan and book their trips. Terms of the deal were not disclosed at the time. In a press release, American Express said the app enabled travelers to message their requests for flights, hotel and restaurant reservations. It also will make travel arrangements based on customers’ requests and provide recommendations. American Express Digital Labs Vice President Phil Norman said in a press release at the time, “Mezi’s AI-powered experience opens up exciting new ways for us to connect with and serve our card members and creates opportunities for us to build more meaningful relationships with them.”