American Express has quietly upped the ante in the business credit card bonus space. Whereas the Business Platinum Card® from American Express currently boasts one of the largest publicly available welcome offers, a newly surfaced 300,000-point targeted Membership Rewards bonus is catapulting the card into uncharted territory.

This elevated offer counts among the highest sign-up bonuses American Express has ever extended to those eligible. If redeemed strategically, the points earned from this one card could be worth thousands of dollars in premium travel. This may make it particularly appealing to business owners and frequent travelers.

A new high-water mark for Amex welcome offers

American Express recently increased the public offer on the Business Platinum Card to 200,000 Membership Rewards points after meeting minimum spending requirements. That by itself puts it among the most generous business card bonuses available today.

However, targeted applicants are now getting 300,000 points after spending $20,000 on eligible purchases during the first three months of account opening. This targeted offer adds an extra 100,000 points beyond the public bonus-a huge jump in potential value.

At commonly used valuations of roughly 2.2 cents per point, that 300,000-point bonus can translate into as much as $6,600 in travel rewards, depending on how the points are redeemed.

Understanding Targeted AMEX Offers

Before we start doing cartwheels, let's dive a little deeper into how targeted offers work. These higher bonuses are not available publicly, and only select applicants will see them, based on factors including credit profile, relationship with American Express, and past account history.

Most often, American Express does not disclose exactly why they target some and not others. Still, a current or former Business Platinum Card or earlier incarnations of it also makes you ineligible for any welcome bonus.

Because of this, eligibility can vary significantly between applicants.

How to Check If You're Eligible for the 300K Bonus

1. Go to the Amex Website

The easiest way to do this is to go directly to the American Express website and begin an application for the Business Platinum Card. American Express will clearly display the welcome offer for which you are eligible before you submit an application.

If you see the 300,000-point bonus listed, then you're eligible. If not, the public 200,000-point offer may still be available - and that's still a stellar deal by most standards.

2. Watch for Targeted Emails and Mailers

American Express very often sends out personalized offers by email or physical mail; these may be for higher bonuses than would otherwise be available.

Be sure to log in with Amex and ensure that marketing communications are on for your email preferences. This way, American Express can email you new card and promotional offers directly, increasing the likelihood of your receiving them.

3. Use CardMatch to Explore Offers

Alternatively, CardMatch can be used, which will give targeted credit card offers without a hard pull to your credit. It won't ding your credit score to check CardMatch, and may show elevated offers from multiple issuers, including American Express.

Annual Fee & Spending Requirements

This does come with a pretty hefty annual fee of $895, which might seem steep at first. But if you're able to take advantage of all the credits and benefits that it offers, then the value can easily exceed that cost, especially for business owners.

To be eligible for either the public or targeted welcome offer, applicants will have to spend $20,000 in the first three months of card membership. While that threshold is indeed high, many businesses should be able to reach it organically between operating expenses, advertising, software subscriptions, or inventory purchases.

Core benefits of the Amex Business Platinum card

Business Platinum Card: This will be ideal for those businesses valuing flexibility, premium travel, and high-end perks. Key benefits include:

• Accelerated earning rates, like 5x points on flights and prepaid hotels booked via AmexTravel.com
• 2X points in select categories for U.S. business, and on purchases of $5,000 or more-up to $2 million annually
• Enjoy over 1,550 airport lounges around the world, including Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs, and Priority Pass locations
• Annual hotel credits on pre-paid Fine Hotels + Resorts and Hotel Collection bookings
• Credit toward TSA PreCheck or Global Entry fee
• Statement credits for select business services: Dell, Adobe, wireless providers, airline incidentals and CLEAR Plus
• Complimentary elite status with Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy and Leaders Club
• Earn an additional 35% Pay With Points rebate on eligible airline bookings, up to 1 million points per calendar year.

These can add considerably to comfort and value, particularly for frequent travelers.

Turning 300,000 Points into High-End Travel

What really makes Membership Rewards points so powerful, though, is their flexibility. Rather than being locked into one airline or hotel program, points can be transferred to one of many partners or used through AmexTravel.

Fly a group to Europe in Business Class

One great use of 300,000 points is transferring them to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. With favorable award pricing on some routes, you could book multiple business-class tickets to London and still have enough points left over to book another trip.

Cash-value equivalent for similar flights could reach tens of thousands of dollars and easily make this one of the more eye-catching ways to extract value from the bonus.

Business Class to Japan in style

Another great redemption is transferring points to ANA Mileage Club. ANA has some of the most competitive business-class award pricing between the U.S. and Japan.

This could book round-trip business-class flights for up to three people, depending on routing and availability, thanks to 300,000 Membership Rewards points. ANA offers some of the best business-class products in the world, which would further add value to the redemption.

Why this offer is particularly rare

The rarest offerings are when American Express does issue higher bonuses, but an offer at this level is extremely uncommon-even on a card that already delivers such substantial ongoing value.

The offer becomes even more interesting because the spending requirement on the 300,000-point bonus is the same as the public offer, so eligible applicants get dramatically more value with no extra spend.

Timing could hardly be better, in other words, for business owners who are already anticipating high near-term expenses.

Final Takeaway:

The targeted 300,000-point welcome bonus on the American Express Business Platinum Card is one of the best available credit card offers right now. Combining this with the card's premium set of benefits and flexible redemption options opens up avenues to unlock truly incredible travel experiences. Although not everyone will qualify, for those that do, this single bonus can fund multiple luxury trips, premium cabin flights, or unforgettable international journeys.

If you are eligible and able to meet the spending requirement responsibly, it is an extremely rare opportunity at maximum rewards from day one.