American Express will target its marketing at Gen Z and the millennial generation in 2025, keeping the card company's focus on younger consumers, CEO Stephen Squeri said last week.

It's a strategy that's been in place for the New York company since at least last year. Amex is staying with the approach because it sees value in younger consumers who potentially are lifetime customers, Squeri said Tuesday at the Goldman Sachs U.S. Financial Services Conference in New York.

Amex is playing the long game, Squeri said. While younger generations tend to spend less than their older counterparts, the company is betting it will recoup its investment when these consumers remain customers for decades, he said.

"They don't spend as much right now as a Gen Xer or a [baby] boomer, and they don't borrow as much, but we believe they'll have 20 more years of relationship with us," Squeri said.

Gen Z refers to people born between 1997 and 2012, whereas millennials were born between 1981 and 1996.

"We built the marketing expenditures to approximately $6 billion next year," Squeri said. Last year, the company’s marketing budget was about $6.8 billion.

Squeri said the company is getting more bang for its buck by targeting more of the spending toward younger consumers.

The strategy seems to be paying off. Spending by Gen Z and millennials on Amex cards was up 12% in the third quarter this year, compared to the same period in 2023, whereas spending by Gen X grew 4%, and spending by baby boomers was flat for the same time period.

On another front, Squeri was asked about his expectations for taxes and regulation under the incoming Trump administration and he said the company is taking a wait-and-see approach.

What the company wants most is stability in both spending and regulation. "Holding where we are from a tax perspective is good for the economy," he said.