Skift Take
IHG believes its larger peers make 10 times as much in fees from co-branded credit cards than it does. So it has room to grow this profitable revenue.
IHG Hotels & Resorts CEO Elie Maalouf has been on the circuit talking up his hotel group's strategy for growth. One of his notable talking points has been on the company's co-branded credit cards with Chase.
Maalouf recently noted some new facts about IHG's credit card aspirations when speaking at Barclays' "Eat, Sleep, Play" conference.
Today, the hotel group generates approximately $100 million yearly in fees from its total credit card business. A few years ago, all the fees went to owners who provided guest benefits, such as free stays when loyalty members redeem points. (Owners of hotels separately also pay fees into a loyalty "system fund" on each paid stay, which is later shared with hotels to cover the