American Express tells its cardmembers to never leave home without it, and Chinese tycoon Liu Yiqian apparently took that advice to heart when he used his card to pay $170 million (including fees) for Amedeo Modigliani's "Reclining Nude" at Christie's earlier this month.

The billionaire's wife, Wang Wei, told The New York Times that the American Express points accrued from the purchase will allow "Their whole family—the couple, their four children and two grandchildren—[to] continue flying for free."

Amedeo Modigliani's Nu Couché.

It's not the first time that Liu, a former taxi driver whose net worth Forbes now estimates at $1.4 billion, has put art purchases on a credit card.

He used his Centurion Card to buy an ancient Chinese ceramic cup from Sotheby's for $36 million in 2014, according to Bloomberg, a purchase that netted him 422 million Amex points.

"We are on a one-year payment plan for the painting," Wang told the Times. "If we had to pay cash upfront, that would be a little difficult for us."

She added: "I mean, who has the money for that?"

Sam Dangremond Contributing Digital Editor Sam Dangremond is a Contributing Digital Editor at Town & Country, where he covers men's style, cocktails, travel, and the social scene.

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