Miles — the way you talk is like you are entitled to cheap credit. You are NOT. This is a business, and as any business they have a right to raise prices on their product. They are responsible to their shareholders – and they include every one who has index funds too. They also have employees and they have to pay salaries. It’s certainly better for economy that they raised rates then that they fire more people and increase unemployment. Also, if you are closing the account, then you are sending them the check for the full amount you owe, right? So why do you care what the rate would go up after that? I don’t understand you. Not to mention that when you agreed to use their card and decided to carry balance you agreed to their terms that included the one that they can raise the rates at any time. First you sign a contract, then you say you aren’t happy about rules? Too bad.

Do a little math. Imagine you lend $1000 of your own money to 10 people you don’t know and without any collateral, $100 each. Imagine one of them defaults i.e. doesn’t return you the money. Here is an elementary school problem for you. How much interest do you need to charge the remaining 9 customers to get your $100 back i.e. to just break even, no profit? Now calculate for some reasonable profit so that you can pay your employees, pay the rent and keep your shareholders happy. 15.9% doesn’t sound that high now, does it? BTW – 10% is around the current default rate.

In other words, “Before they make what we intend to do illegal, we’re going to screw as many of our customers as we can.” I pointed out that what they were doing was unique in my experience — i.e., I’ve had other cards notify me of their intention to raise interest rates, but never had one behave so dishonorably as to unilaterally raise my rates despite closing my account. “Yeah, I’m really sorry, ” the nice lady said.

She sounded genuinely ashamed to be party to what the company was doing. I can’t blame her. It’s like working for one of those telephone operations where they sell fake burial plots or cancer insurance to fleece old people out of their savings.

It is disgusting to think that the law, until now, allowed a company to do as Amex is doing in this case. Amex, despite its carefully groomed image, has decided instead to throw in with the bottom feeders: the loan sharks, war profiteers, companies that sell spoiled food to Third World countries, all with the excuse, “Well, it’s legal.”

I’m writing to my congressman, both senators, every Amex celebrity spokesman and sending off press releases (talk is admittedly cheap, but at some point one of the press releases will get picked up). And of course closing my account, which I’ve had since 1995. Never made an easier decision in my life.

They’re slime.