Bloomberg: "Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. agreed to cap credit-card swipe fees — a deal that US merchants say will save them at least $30 billion over five years — in one of the most significant antitrust settlements ever, following a legal fight that spanned almost two decades."
"The deal, which is subject to court approval, also would allow retailers to charge consumers extra at checkout for using Visa or Mastercard credit cards and use pricing tactics to steer customers to lower-cost cards, according to a statement Tuesday from attorneys representing the merchants."
View From The Wing notes that this "will not have a material impact to credit card rewards."
If you're curious how this impacts the push by some members of Congress to wreck credit card rewards, don't expect this to stop that push. He notes that "It does undermine the case for Durbin-Marshall legislation to limit card interchange although retailers will argue that it does not – when I debated the law’s main lobbyist/proponent in November, he conceded that the legislation was just a start and they would keep pushing for more."
Amex is out with a fun targeted Amex Offer for flights on British Airways. You can get $180 back as a statement credit if you spend $1,200+ with British Airways by June 23, 2024. You don't have to travel by this date, but you need to have paid by then.
Important Terms
Ideally, you'll get this offer on the Amex Platinum so you can earn 5x on the purchase(s).
There's a great Amex Offer for stays at Preferred Hotels & Resorts. If you spend $500+ by June 30, 2024, you can receive a $100 statement credit.
Important Terms
I'm curious to see if you actually need to book through that specific link. I wouldn't be surprised if a direct booking is all that's required to trigger the offer.
Assuming that's the case, make sure you book your stay via an advisor (like myself) with access to the Preferred Platinum Program to get VIP benefits such as:
You can book with Preferred Platinum benefits at some properties via this link or you can submit a request here.
You can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Air France-KLM Flying Blue and receive a 25% bonus. To transfer bonus runs through April 30, 2024. In most cases, the transfer should process instantly, but it is possible to have Flying Blue put an award ticket on hold while you transfer points.
Generally, I wouldn't recommend transferring points speculatively.
There's an Amex Offer in which you can get $50 back when you spend $250+ on room rates and room chartes at one of IHG's "mainstream brands". This appears to be a targeted offer.
Eligible Brands
Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, EVEN Hotels, avid hotels, Atwell Suites, Garner Hotels
Important Terms
According to YouTuber, Joe Barreto, Citi is set to (finally) launch a card to compete in the premium card market. In fact, Citi is expected to launch a personal and business version of this card in the third quarter of this year. Both will have benefits such as travel and purchases protections. Naturally, Priority Pass lounge access is expected as well.
While I'd love to see new cards offered by Citi, I'll believe it when I see it. I've been hearing rumors about their new premiums card since late 2022!
Barclays has launched a new 100,000-point welcome offer for the Wyndham Earner Plus Card. The minimum spend is only $2,000 in 6 months. The card comes with automatic Wyndham Platinum status.
Long-term, the Wyndham Earner Business Card is probably a better bet, but this offer is your easiest path to 100,000 Wyhdnam points. However, I wouldn't prioritize either card over those that earn transferable points.
Barclays has launched a new 100,000-point welcome offer for the Wyndham Earner Business Card. The minimum spend requirement is steep at $15,000, but you have 12 months to meet the spend.
The card comes with automatic Wyndham Diamond status.
Long-term, this is probably the best card if you're a fan of Wyndham. That being said, I still wouldn't prioritize it over cards that earn transferable points.
Etihad Guest might not have great award rates (and awful award cancellation fees), but they're running an impressive transfer bonus promo.
You can receive a bonus of up to 40% when you transfer points from select banks. Of the options, the only US bank option is Capital One. Please note that this transfer bonus is handled on the Etihad side and won't be reflected on Capital One's site.
Transfer Bonus Tiers
Important Terms
Points Wire Note:
I would not recommend transferring Capital One Miles to Etihad Guest speculatively. The program has niche uses, the bonus miles might not post for a while, and the cancellation fees make it to risky.
One scenario in which a transfer could make sense is if you want to book Etihad first class (or The Apartments) or business class more than 30 days from departure. Etihad has restricted partner access to award space to within 30 days so, currently, Etihad Guest is your only option.
One Mile At A Time: "Chase has been aggressively expanding its airport lounge portfolio, with the opening of Chase Sapphire Lounges by The Club. Up until now, four Chase Sapphire Lounges have been open, including in Boston (BOS), Hong Kong (HKG), New York (JFK), and New York (LGA). A fifth lounge has just quietly opened as part of the network, which is pretty exciting."
As Chase did at JFK, they've taken over the management of the Etihad lounge at Washington Dulles.
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