American Express Co. will pay £750 million to International Consolidated Airlines Group SA as part of the multi-year extension of their global commercial partnership, the European airline holding company announced July 24.

The two companies signed a multi-year renewal agreement, which will see American Express pre-purchasing Avios points for its British Airways co-branded cards and membership rewards program. IAG is the parent company of British Airways (Ba) Ltd.

Avios is the reward currency of the British Airways Executive Club loyalty program. Members of the club can use Avios points to purchase flights.

The £750 million deal with American Express comes ahead of IAG's earnings report for the second quarter, scheduled for July 31. The airline company suffered an after-tax loss of €556 million before exceptional items in the first quarter as the coronavirus pandemic sapped air travel demand.

In April, IAG said it was expecting a "significantly worse" operating loss in the second quarter. It also warned of up to 12,000 job losses as part of its restructuring plan.