American Express buys Steve Case's Revolution MoneyAmerican Express announced plans Wednesday to buy Revolution Money, a Web payments firm started in 2005 by Internet firm AOL (A division of Time Warner, Inc., New York, NY, www.aol.com) The world's largest online information service with access to the Internet, e-mail, chat rooms and a variety of databases and services. founder Steve Case Steve Case (born August 21, 1958) is a businessman best known as the co-founder and former chief executive officer and chairman of America Online (AOL). He reached his highest profile when he played an instrumental role in AOL's merger with Time Warner in 2000. . The purchase price was set at 300 million dollars for the firm, which offers secure payments through an Internet platform. Revolution Money issues cards without the use of names or account numbers, with transactions authorized using a personal code. It provides person-to-person payment accounts that can be used on social and instant messaging Exchanging text messages in real time between two or more people logged into a particular instant messaging (IM) service. Instant messaging is more interactive than e-mail because messages are sent immediately, whereas e-mail messages can be queued up in a mail server for seconds or networks as well as prepaid cards. "New payments products and platforms are evolving rapidly and it's important for us to keep identifying cutting edge technologies that can extend our leadership beyond the traditional payments arena," said Kenneth Chenault Kenneth Irvine Chenault (born Long Island, June 2, 1951[1]) has been the CEO and Chairman of American Express since 2001.[2] [3] He was the third African-American CEO of a Fortune 500 company.[4] He received a B.A. , chairman and chief executive officer of American Express. "While Revolution Money is a young and relatively small company, we believe it has big potential. This is a smart, nimble business. It's run by an accomplished management team who have quickly developed some cutting edge e-payment offerings. Joining with American Express will help unlock their potential, while allowing us to deliver competitive online payment products more rapidly and efficiently." Jason Hogg, founder and chief executive officer of Revolution Money, will continue as president and chief executive officer. Ted Leonsis, a Revolution Money investor and chairman, will be special advisor to American Express on digital and online payments strategy. "We have built a next-generation payments platform that will enable American Express to compete even more effectively, especially against online competitors," said Leonsis. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory review, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2010. 
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