Which Credit Cards are In My Wallet? – 2022
Some changes were made on credit cards and airline miles this 2022 so I took some time to review the ones I have.
2022. We still haven’t fully recovered from the pandemic yet here we are facing another crisis – the Russia-Ukraine war. Unfortunately, this event has affected not only their citizens, but really the entire world.
For one, oil and other commodities’ prices have soared. This, in turn caused a number of goods to increase in price as well. Of course, individuals aren’t the only ones burdened by this but companies too. As a matter of fact, some banks and airlines had to adjust their products and services starting last year.
Consequently, I had to review how these adjustments affected and will affect my credit cards and their usage.
Currently Active
1.BDO’s Diners Club Premiere
Spend-to-Miles Ratio: PHP 30.00/mile, PHP 15.00/mile for dining transactions
Annual Fee: PHP 4,500.00
Lounge Access: Diners Club Lounges (free 2 per membership year)
Airlines Partners: Asia Miles
Comments: Unlike their other card brands, BDO’s Diners Club has held on to its pre-pandemic spend-to-miles ratio. On the other hand, while they still offer miles multiplier promos occasionally, I haven’t seen any above the times 2 multiplier. They also have cash rebate promos more often than before.
Unfortunately, Asia Miles remains the sole airline partner for miles transfer although they did add cash credits for your miles redemption.
Additionally, BDO released a notice on the implementation of cross-border fees on their cards. Because of this, multiplier and cash rebate promos involving foreign and PayPal transactions may no longer be practical. Honestly? I’ll have to wait and see how this will affect the promos in the coming months.
Conclusion: Will continue using the card for dining transactions and other BDO promos.
2. BDO’s American Express Platinum
Spend-to-Miles Ratio: PHP 45.00/MR; 1.5 MR/airline mile; effectively at PHP 67.50/airline mile
Annual Fee: PHP 5,000.00
Lounge Access: Maharba Lounge (previously Skyview Lounge) at NAIA Terminal 3
Airlines Partners: Asia Miles, Kris Flyer, Royal Orchid Plus, Enrich, Delta Sky Miles
Comments: Similar to what I noted on Diners Club Premiere, American Express Platinum has mostly been offering cash rebate promos instead of MR multiplier promos. This somehow supports the survey I did a while ago wherein majority of the Filipino card users are after cash rebates/credits; I’m guessing this is how their marketing/sales department reacted to the consumers’ behavior…
Moving on, just like other banks, they devalued their rewards program last year. But by some stroke of luck, a promo released on June 1 brought the conversion of MR points to airline miles back down to PHP 45.00/airline mile. The timing couldn’t be better since there’s an on-going promo with Asia Miles wherein you get 15% bonus miles for transferring from program partners.
Conclusion: Will continue using the card for BDO promos.
3. EastWest Bank’s KrisFlyer World Mastercard
Spend-to-Miles Ratio: PHP 36.00/mile, PHP 12.00/mile on select spends
Annual Fee: PHP 5,000.00
Lounge Access: Mastercard Airport Experiences provided by LoungeKey (4 per calendar year)
Airlines Partner: KrisFlyer (Singapore Airlines) and their partner airlines (Star Alliance)
Comments: Still the best card for me given how everything’s online. As a matter of fact, most of the promos I utilized on this card are for double digit sales on various, online shopping platforms (Lazada, Shopee). Not only do I get discounts, I earn more miles too!
Unfortunately, KrisFlyer isn’t safe from devaluation either (as announced here). According to MainlyMiles.com, this means that the cost of flight redemption will increase somewhere between 7% to 16%. To be honest, this is still acceptable to me given the current global circumstances.
Conclusion: Will continue using the card for everyday and online transactions, unless there are promos with other banks.
For Cancellation
Citibank’s PremierMiles Visa
The main reason why I plan to cancel this card is because of the devaluation from PHP 30.00/mile to PHP 48.00/mile. Of course, there’s the pending merger with Union Bank too. Unfortunately, we still don’t have any idea as to how Union Bank will be handling Citi’s products. Ultimately, whether I keep this card or not depends on Union Bank.
Citibank’s Prestige Visa
Similar to the PremierMiles credit card above, I’m waiting to see how Union Bank will handle the Prestige card. Current global conditions also prevent me from maximizing the benefits of this card so that’s another reason for cancellation.
And that’s it for my credit cards this 2022! How about you? Did you make any changes to your cards? Or maybe switched up the rewards system you’re after? Feel free to share them down in the comments below!
