American Express President Ed Gilligan Dies -- 2nd Update

By Josh Beckerman 

American Express Co. said President Edward Gilligan died after becoming seriously ill on a flight home to New York on Friday morning.

Mr. Gilligan, who was 55 years old, was widely considered the heir apparent to Chief Executive Kenneth Chenault.

Mr. Gilligan was named the company's president two years ago and joined American Express in 1980 while still a student at New York University. He had served as vice chairman beginning in 2007.

"His contributions have left an indelible imprint on practically every area of our business," Mr. Chenault said in a letter to the staff.

Mr. Gilligan is responsible for the company's global consumer, small business services, merchant services and network services groups.

At the time of Mr. Gilligan's 2013 promotion, the company credited him with increasing its share of online spending, enhanced social media efforts and international expansion into new areas of loyalty marketing.

He is survived by his wife, Lisa, and children Katie, Meaghan, Kevin and Shane.

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