A couple of days ago I closed my MS brokerage account. My understanding is that the MS Platinum Card requires you to have an investment relationship with MS, so I also opened an ETRADE account at the same time, hoping to maintain that relationship through ETRADE. Then I asked AMEX customer service, and they said they had no way to check whether my card was going to be closed, nor could they link it to an E*TRADE account. So I called MS again, and the rep's exact words were "we don't force to close your American Express account," meaning they don't handle this either, but he was very certain that my Platinum Card is still open—it's just that I can't enjoy the reimbursement from their CashPlus account. So is this a loophole? Does this card no longer require an investment relationship going forward? PS: With the highest-tier CashPlus account, if you deposit 30K and set up automatic transfers of 5K in and out each month, you can waive the $895 annual fee. After six months, you can just close it and the annual fee is still waived. A 3% return over six months isn't bad, right?
