Public Bank Esso Mobil Gold Credit Card

photo source: http://www.pbebank.com/

Lately I keep hearing the Public Bank Esso-Mobil card being advertised on the radio, so I decided to take a look. At first glance, it seems to be offering quite a good deal to match the Shell Citibank Gold Credit Card at 8% cash rebate. On top of that, there is a RM20 cash back too, if you’re a new Public Bank credit card member.

Another difference that this card has apart from other Public Bank credit cards is the free annual fee, without any conditions. However, as I looked further, there are a lot of hidden criteria to the 8% rebate and RM20 cash back that made me wonder if Public Bank launched this just to remain competitive with other banks.

The RM20 needs you to spend a minimum RM400 within the first 60days of your card approval. And this minimum amount is only on retail purchases, which means your petrol doesn’t count. Unless you’re already planning to get something within the first 2 months, you may tend to buy something totally unnecessary just to get the RM20.

The 8% cash rebate is based on a tiered plan: to reach a rebate of 8%, you need to spend more than RM800 at Esso or Mobil stations (regardless on fuel or purchases at the mart). On top of that, the rebate is capped at RM80 per month. Wait, there’s more..the cap goes down to RM50 per month from September  1^st, 2011 onwards. What happens post August is the additional 3% case rebate given will cease from the earlier mentioned date onwards, so max earning is just 5%.

The only good thing regarding the rebate plan is the fact that there is still a 0.5% Unlimited Case MegaBonus (some fancy name to attract attention?) on all other transactions with the card. Although this is no different than many cards offering 1 point for RM1, something is better than nothing.

My verdict: might be worth getting if you’re a regular (and maybe heavy) user of Esso or Mobil. Otherwise, there is not much value in it. No one I know has it yet, so I’m not sure if there can be a fee waiver to the GST, but if there is, then it could be a good deal for Esso-Mobil patrons.

Surf over here for my post on Citibank Cash Back Platinum Card

Maybankard 2 Cards

photo source: http://www.maybank2u.com.my/

Maybankard 2 credit cards was launched some time ago, but it is still an interesting addition to your existing card collection. There are 2 levels to choose from; Gold or Platinum. For Gold, you need to earn RM30k per annum, while Platinum requires RM60k per annum. The good thing about the cards is the lifetime fee waiver for the annual fees. It also provides 2 cards (1 American Express and 1 MasterCard or Visa) for the single charge of Government Service Tax. Of course, even with 2cards, the same credit limit applies, but you can enjoy benefits from the 2 different credit providers.

Usage of the AMEX card gives 5x TreatsPoints for every RM spent. This translates to 2.5% cash back for redemption of the gifts provided by Maybank. The AMEX card also gives 5% cash back for weekend spending, but capped at RM50 per month. Seems like a very good deal indeed, with the only minus point being that the use of MasterCard or Visa only gives 1x for every RM spent and the 5% cash back on weekends doesn’t apply. Well, you can probably use only the AMEX and use the other card as a bookmark J

This card also charges the lowest interest rate I’ve ever seen for a credit card – only 8.88% per annum. I guess Maybank must really like the number 8. Oh, but the 8.88% applies only if you pay the minimum 5% monthly, with a minimum of RM25.

This is where the similarity for both cards end. For the platinum card, it gives some additional privileges like travel insurance coverage and retail protection. These are especially good to cover unwanted costs if any mishap happens during times of travel. Platinum card also provides complimentary golf at some of the courses within Malaysia.

To apply, you can just fill up your details for an officer to get in touch with you. Typically they will call within 2 days to follow up on the application. Only thing is unlike other banks, where they just need your IC and existing card, Maybank requires your 3months’ payslip and also active savings/current account. A little overboard, but they’re probably just being cautious, what with the many folks out there now not really knowing how to control their finances.

My verdict: having the AMEX of this Maybankard 2 card combo is a good deal, with emphasis on the 5x TreatsPoints and the 5% cashback. Only trade-off with a normal AMEX card is that this gives Maybank TreatsPoints instead of American Express’ Membership Rewards points (these are evergreen!!) The additional card doesn’t seem to have much use, but it does come in handy when there are promotions specifically for MasterCard or Visa. Oh, just a reminder, if you need both MasterCard and Visa on top of the AMEX, then an additional RM50 (GST) will be charged.

Citibank Cash Back Platinum Card

photo source: http://www.citibank.com.my/

The Citibank Cash Back Platinum Card is the latest cash back credit card released by Citibank. Unlike other banks, it offers cash back on all days, with the preset %, based on the different categories. However, as always, there is a cap on the petrol spending. For this card, Citibank is offering a maximum RM600 per month, which equals to maximum cash back of RM30 per month. Good news is that there is no stipulated cap on the cash back for other categories!!

The card offers 2% for pharmaceuticals at Guardian and Watsons, 2% for groceries at all the major hypermarkets in Malaysia (namely Tesco, Giant, Carrefour & Cold Storage), 2% for phone bills from Maxis, Digi & Celcom. For everything else, the cash back is only a meager 0.3%. I guess this is the trade off with the higher % for other categories.

Also coming with the card are some other perks, i.e. Retail Protection Plan and Healthcare privileges. For the RPP, items that are lost, damaged or stolen will be reimbursed, up till 50%, but to a maximum of RM10k per item and RM15k per occurrence. This is only limited to eligible purchases, but I don’t have much info on what will be considered ‘eligible’. For the Healthcare part, you will get to enjoy a 30% discount on all Executive Screening Packages and also a 15% discount on all walk-in hospital room. These health benefits are only available in KPJ Healthcare’s participating hospitals.

To apply for this card, you will need to earn RM48,000 in a year or have an existing credit card (minimum 6months-1year) with a credit limit of RM10k. According to Citibank’s published annual fees, the principal requires forking out RM195 while supplementary costs RM100. This doesn’t really matter, as most Citibank cards’ annual fees can be waived with a phone call to their Customer Service. The only thing is that the card needs to be used somewhat actively for them to waive the annual fees.

My verdict: this is one of the better cash back card there is in Malaysia, although you may need to do some tracking of your petrol spending to not exceed the set limit. Remember that there is no bonus points once the cap is exceeded, so spend wisely (on petrol, since there is no cap on other spending)..another cash back card that may be able to compare is OCBC’s Titanium Card, but that will be another blog..