WHY AMERICAN EXPRESS NEEDS TO ITS FRANCHISE September 13, 2004 Business Week 1 BarChart ...but American Express' total billings still lag... TOTAL CREDIT-CARD PURCHASES PER YEAR BILLIONS OF DOLLARS true 0 true true 200 true true 400 true true 600 true Visa 3 false 1 3.6 2.5 false 540 false false Mastercard 3 false 1 2.7 1.9 false 405 false false American Express 3 false 2 1.7 1.3 false 255 true false Discover 3 false 1 0.5 0.8 false 75 false false Diner's Club 3 false 1 0.1 0.3 false 15 false false