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Having co-branded credit cards with the national carrier is indeed an ordinary strategy for most banks internationally. But it is not for Hong Leong Bank.
In Hong Leong Bank's credit cards line-up, there are two co-branded airline credit cards. AirAsia....understandable, but with Emirates, it is a game changer. The Emirates co-branded credit card is introduced in May 2019. We will have a depth review afterwards.
In this article, we will compare different reward credit cards offered by Hong Leong Bank in term of travelling (Mileage redemption). They will be categorised by type of redemptions.
1. Earn and Redeem
This is a straight forward category.
Hong Leong Bank offers only one type of card for earning its reward points. Sutera Platinum card. It comes with two variations, visa and Mastercard.
Benefits:
- 6x on Overseas spending (including foreign currencies online)
- 3x on Dining
- 3x on Local Weekend spending
- 1x on other spending
- Complimentary Access to Plaza Premium Lounge in KLIA and KLIA2 for the first 250 Sutera Platinum Credit Cardholders for each month
- Travel Inconvenience Insurance up to 1.7 Million MYR
Eligibility and Annual Fees:
- Minimum Annual Income of 60,000 MYR (approx 444,000 THB)
- Annual fee of 400 MYR (approx 3,000 THB). Could be waived by hitting annum minimum spend of 15,000 MYR (approx 111,000 THB).
Airline Miles redemption rate:
BigPoints
Online: 6.5:1 (Min 6,500:1,000)
Fax/ Call Centre: 6.8:1 (Min 6,800:1,000)
Enrich Miles
Online: 10:1 (Min 10,500:1,000)
Fax/ Call Centre: 10.3:1 (Min 10,300:1,000)
Yes, Hong Leong Bank offers better rate when redemption is done online. Another point for "Don't go with the flow".
2. Malaysia Airlines Enrich Miles Auto Redemption
There is 3 variations of this card. Visa Infinite, Visa Infinite Doctor's Edition for Doctors only and Visa Infinite P for invitation only.
Common Benefits:
- 1 Enrich Mile for every 2.8 MYR local retail spending
- 1 Enrich Mile for every 1.8 MYR overseas retail spending
- No Annual Fee
- Travel Inconvenience Insurance with coverage up to 3 Million MYR
Lounge Access for Visa Infinite and Visa Infinite Doctor's Edition
- 4x Plaza Premium Lounge Access in Malaysia and Singapore, subject to a minimum cumulative retail transaction of RM100,000 in the preceding year. 20% off for accompanying guest.
Lounge Access for Visa Infinite P
- 4x Priority Pass, subject to a minimum cumulative retail transaction of RM 300,000 in the preceding year. 27 USD for each accompanying guest.
Eligibility for Visa Infinite
- Minimum Annual income of 150,000 MYR (approx 1.12M THB)
Eligibility for Visa Infinite Doctor's Edition
- Medical doctors registered with Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) and dentists registered with Malaysian Dental Council (MDC)
3. Airasia Big Points Auto Redemption
There is two variations of this card: Gold and Platinum, classified by minimum annual income.
The Platinum version has annual fee of 350 MYR (approx 2,600 THB) and 200 MYR (approx 1,500 THB) for Gold version
Common Benefits:
- 1 Big Point for every 1 MYR spending on AirAsia
- 1 Big Point for every 2 MYR overseas spending
- 1 Big Point for every 3 MYR local spending (Platinum Card)
- 1 Big Point for every 5 MYR local spending (Gold Card)
Welcome Bonus:
Platinum cardholders
5,000 BIG Points: minimum spend of RM 2,500 in first 60 days after card approval
5,000 BIG Points per quarter: minimum spend of RM 5,000 per calendar quarter
Gold cardholders 3,000 BIG Points: minimum spend of RM 1,500 in first 60 days after card approval
3,000 BIG Points per quarter: minimum spend of RM 3,000 per calendar quarter
Exclusive for Platinum AirAsia
- Instant upgrade to Platinum Freedom Flyer status: Priority check-in, priority boarding & Xpress baggage collection
- Up to 5.5x for low fare ticket
- 7x for Premium Flex and Premium Flat Bed ticket
Eligibility:
Platinum Card: Minimum Annual income of 60,000 MYR (approx 450,000 THB)
Gold Card: Minimum Annual income of 24,000 MYR (approx 170,000 THB)
4. Emirates Skywards Miles Auto Redemption
This card comes with 3 variations: Platinum, World and World Elite with different benefits and redemption rates.
A. Miles Redemption:
Emirates World Elite
- 2.5 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR spending on Emirates
- 1.75 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR overseas spending (non MYR)
- 1 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR local spending (MYR)
Emirates World
- 2 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR spending on Emirates
- 1.5 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR overseas spending (non MYR)
- 1 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR local spending (MYR)
Emirates Platinum
- 1.5 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR spending on Emirates
- 1.25 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR overseas spending (non MYR)
- 0.5 Skywards Miles for every 4 MYR local spending (MYR)
B. Bonuses
Emirates World Elite
- 150,000 Miles when hits total transactions of 200,000 MYR (approx 2.2M THB) in first year
- 5,000 Miles within 45 days of card approval
- 5,000 Miles when hits total expenses of 200,000 MYR as annual bonus
Emirates World
- 75,000 Miles when hits total transactions of 300,000 MYR (approx 1.5M THB) in first year
- 10,000 Miles within 45 days of card approval
- 10,000 Miles when hits total expenses of 300,000 MYR as annual bonus
Emirates Platinum
- 2,500 Miles within 45 days of card approval
- 2,500 Miles when hits total expenses of 50,000 MYR (approx 370K THB) as annual bonus
C. Benefits
Common Benefits*
- Golf Privileges
- Airport Transfer by Grab Ride
- Complimentary Green Fee for selected golf clubs
- Travel and Medical travel insurance
- Purchase Protection
*Differ by tiers
Common Benefits for Emirates World and Emirates World Elite Only
- Access to more than 1 Million Boingo Wifi
- Upgrade to Skywards Silver status on 1st year: Priority check in, additional luggage for 12 KG, 25% bonus skywards miles on Emirates flights and access to Emirates Lounge at Dubai International Airport
- Emirates KLIA lounge access (2x per year for World and 4x per year for World Elite)
- Complimentary of LoungeKey membership, 32 USD per person per visit. (World Elite receive one free access per year)
Exclusively for Emirates World Elite
- 1x worldwide limo service
D. Eligibility:
- Emirates World Elite Minimum Annual income 250,000 MYR (approx 1.8M THB)
- Emirates World Minimum Annual income 90,000 MYR (approx 670,000 THB)
- Emirates Platinum Minimum Annual income 60,000 MYR (approx 450,000 THB)
E. Annual Fee:
- Emirates World Elite 2,500 MYR (approx 19,00 THB)
- Emirates World 1,200 MYR (approx 8,800 THB)
- Emirates Platinum 250 MYR (approx 1,800 THB). Waived when hits spending of 50,000 MYR
Final Thoughts
Hong Leong Bank offers relatively less products and points multipliers compared to other competitors.
However, it displays the redemption ratios clearly on website. With automatic mileage conversion for most products, it is definitely a big plus. For most banks, phone calls are needed for points transfer, which is not a very 2020 thing.
Despite the quantity, Hong Leong Bank offers a wide range of travel product. From AirAsia to Emirates. It captures users from different market segment, which is a wise move.
All the products (except line-up 1. Earn and Redeem) are highly recommended according to airline preferences.
Hong Leong Bank, with the strategy "Not go with the flow" really does stand out in the market.
Share this post to your Doctor and Dentist mates, to get a free Visa infinite card to indulge their next flying experience with Malaysia Airlines after the pandemic of Covid-19.
Have a glance of estimated earning miles by using the excel file below:
By inserting the amount of expense in Yellow Column
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