GenX GenY GenZ: Platinum Credit Cards - Up To Annual Income RM100K

An article by GenX published at www.generationsxyz.blogspot.com
Please do not reproduce/reprint this article in whole or part in any form.

The first article of my series of different categories of credit cards was titled Entry Level Credit Card - Annual Income Less Than RM30K. This article is my second post on the different series of categories for credit cards available in Malaysia. When Platinum credit cards were first issued, the annual income requirement was above RM120,000 per year and the credit limit would not be less than RM20K. Today, anyone earning RM36K per annum can qualify for a Platinum Credit Card and the credit limit can be as low as RM3,000!

Platinum credit cards nowadays are no longer deemed as a "status" card, in fact you can say that Platinum is equivalent to Gold card status and some card issuers don't even issue Gold Credit Cards anymore. While preparing a table for this post, I had to visit the many banks' websites to gather information and I noted that the Maybank Platinum credit card annual income requirement has been reduced from RM120,000 to RM60,000. Citibank still states that annual income requirement is RM100,000 but I can tell you that you don't need to earn that much to qualify for one.

Some banks even issue different types of Platinum credit cards targeted at a specific market like movie-goers and have co-brand cards with car dealers, airlines and hypermarkets. I will not discuss about these type of co-brand cards except for CIMB Enrich Platinum MasterCard which I feel is one of the only few remaining Platinum credit cards that is truly exclusive and prestigious. And over the years, some banks have removed benefits which came with Platinum cards. UOB Preferred Platinum credit card used to provide Travel Insurance and RHB Platinum credit card came with Priority Pass Membership.

Below is a table I have prepared for your easy reference of Malaysia Platinum credit cards benefits and requirements. Click on the table to enlarge it.

As you can observe, I have ranked the Platinum Credit Cards into 3 categories. The lower ranked cards' annual income requirement is less than RM60K/yr and do not offer Free Airport Lounge entry. The mid ranked cards minimum income requirement is RM60K/yr and above and some do offer Travel Insurance, Purchase Protection, Golf benefits (like discount or Free green fees) and even FREE access to Airport Lounge locally. From the table, you can observe that Maybank 2 Platinum Cards is pretty good and if it had offered free access to airport lounge, I would say it is the best Platinum Card in Malaysia but this is not the case.

As for the higher ranked cards i.e. Public Bank Platinum, American Express Platinum and CIMB Enrich Platinum, the reason why it is ranked as highest is because I don't have them and don't think I will ever apply for them and as such they are exclusive to me, hahahaha.

PUBLIC BANK PLATINUM CREDIT CARD

Actually, I did have Public Bank Platinum but cancelled it as it did not benefit me. You earn cash back with this card based on tiers, starting from 0.3% (for spending of RM5K and below) to maximum 0.9% (if you spent RM100K and above locally). The reason why I say this card is exclusive is because this card only benefit big spenders. The standard average returns we get from most credit card is 0.5%. With the Public Bank Platinum Credit Card, once you spend above RM30,000 for a particular statement cycle, you will earn 0.55% or higher. If you spend less than RM1K per month with this card every month for a year, the cash back you earn won't be enough to offset the RM50 GST. I have shown you guys in my article Entry Level Credit Cards that you need to spend RM16,666.67 a year just to offset GST with cash back of 0.3%.

Below is Public Bank Cash MegaBonus Table for your easy reference.

While I was checking Public Bank Platinum's so called Exquisite Offers, one particular offer got me excited. It was mentioned that with the Public Bank Platinum, one can earn 5% cash back for Coach, Rolex at Swiss Watch Gallery and other luxury brands; BUT, after reading the Terms and Conditions, the max cash back is RM100. Heck, if you buy an entry-level Rolex Watch costing RM15K, this so called 5% cash back promo with cap of RM100 cash back works out to be 0.67%! Not only that, this so called 5% cash back is not guaranteed because the total cash back allocated for this promo until end of the year is RM100K per month. Better you go use your Maybankard 2 American Express where you get more in return with the 5X Treats Points.

AMERICAN EXPRESS Platinum CREDIT CARD

The American Express Platinum credit card was ranked in the top 3 credit cards in my article Top 10 Credit Cards in Malaysia. This card is pretty good where you can earn 10X TP at selected merchants and it grants you unlimited entries to our local airport lounges and some overseas. And with minimum 2X Membership Reward points for every RM1 spent, it is like you are getting unlimited 1% cash back (when you redeem your MR for cash where 200MR = RM1) from your transactions. And if you spend more than RM20K per year with this card, do look into enrolling into Turbo Points program where you will then earn minimum 3X Membership Reward Points.

Even though the annual income requirement is RM60K/year, I still consider this card to be a prestigious and exclusive credit card because after the second year, you won't get the annual fee waived simply by requesting for it. In order for you to get annual fee waived, you have to spend a reasonable amount of money with it.

The other advantage of having an American Express is that you are also entitled to some of the benefits offered to Maybankards like the 0% 12 months Balance Transfer. And if you dine at Shangri-La Hotel KL, this is the best credit card to have.

I do consider the AMEX Platinum credit card to be a Prestigious card because cheapskates like me won't fork out RM800 for the annual fees after the first year and I won't dine at Shangri-La's Lafite (unless someone else paying the bill, haha) and once in a blue moon only I dine at Zipangu.

UOB PREFERRED PLATINUM VISA AND MASTERCARD PRIVILEGE BANKING

UOB Platinum credit cards with the words Privilege Banking should also fall into the category of Higher Ranked Platinum because in order to qualify for one, you need to have RM500K Assets Under Management with UOB Bank as of February 2012. The benefits of these PB cards are almost same as the normal standard UOB Plat except that you are entitled to enter KLIA and LCCT Plaza Premium Lounge for FREE 12 times per year. The other thing is with this card, you can enter any UOB PB centre and have free drinks and pastries like when you are at Orchard Road Singapore :)

CIMB ENRICH PLATINUM MASTERCARD

I would say that this card is indeed prestigious if not the most exclusive in the Platinum category as only big spenders and those who frequently fly with Malaysia Airlines will own this card. To get the annual fee waived, you have to spend RM100K and if you spend less than RM50K there is no waiver!

MID RANGE PLATINUM CREDIT CARDS

I have published related articles for most of the platinum cards in these Mid Ranked Platinum Credit Cards where I have either done a review or touched on promotions with the cards. Click on the links below to read my articles.

Maybankard 2 Cards - in this combo package, you get the an American Express credit card with either a Visa or MasterCard. The main star of this package is the American Express card where you earn unlimited 5X Treats Points which are evergreen PLUS you can earn up to RM50 with 5% cash back every month for your weekends transactions. As for the Visa and MasterCard, you will get the opportunity to use it when the merchant do not accept American Express. Click here to read my review on th Maybankard 2 Cards.

Maybank Platinum Visa or MasterCard - Maybank have recently reduced the annual income requirement for this card to RM60K/yr and it now no longer entitles the card holder to enjoy private banking facilities at Maybank. Comparing to Maybankard 2 Platinum Cards, this card does not have much benefits; BUT if you do transact overseas, this card is great because it earns you 2x Treats Points.

RHB Bank Platinum - This card comes with 4 combined free passes to Plaza Premium Lounge at KLIA, LCCT and Senai. RHB have been promoting this card by emphasizing on the 15% cash back at selected restaurants but none of them I patronize. I do have the RHB Platinum credit card which comes with auto free annual fee waiver since I applied it through Premier Banking. I wanted to cancel this card but someone from RHB called me and requested I retain it as their system shows I get free auto annual fee waiver up to year 2048! And he further said that I will get RM50 cash back to offset GST, well, I have to just wait and see if it is true.

UOB Preferred Platinum - My first Platinum Card back in 2002 and that time people would be impressed when I use it. Nowadays hardly used it. Click here to read my article on Cash Rebate with SMART$ Cash and Installment Plan for Rolex. This card is good if you like Coach handbags because you earn 5% SMART$ cash with it everyday at Coach outlets. You got to spend RM3000 yearly and swipe 12 times to get the annual fee waived.

AmBank Platinum - This card is FREE :) - Click here to read Ambank Credit Card Promotion 2011.

Citibank Platinum - this card do offer 5X points at some departmental stores and for groceries. The other thing I must add is that the Travel insurance comes with Medical Insurance too. I did do a comparison between Citibank Platinum versus Citibank PremierMiles - click here to read it. You got to request for annual fee waiver after the second year.

Alliance Bank Platinum - this card earns you unlimited reward points which are evergreen PLUS monthly cash back. I did touch on the cash back in my article Earn Pocket Money with Credit Cards. This card is good for spending between RM2K to RM5K. Annual fee is waived automatically with 12 swipe in a year.

Hong Leong Bank Platinum - really nothing much to write about this card unless you are desperately in need of a short term loan where they will bank in cash into your CASA. Click here to read my article on Balance Transfer 2011. This is one of the few Platinum cards that offer Toll Free Customer Service besides Maybank.

Standard Chartered Bank - go check it out and see if their dining offers will benefit you. There is no auto annual fee waiver and you got to request for it.

CIMB Bank - CIMB credit card standard features are nothing great. Click here to read my article on CIMB credit card promotions 2012.

LOWER RANKED PLATINUM CREDIT CARD

Now, I have ranked UOB One Card Platinum and Citibank Platinum Cash Back in this range simply because of the annual income requirements and also because they don't grant you FREE access to airport lounges; however, it does not mean that you should not consider them because both these cards earn you 5% cash back at ALL PETROL STATIONS. The UOB One Card is the best credit card in Malaysia if you pump petrol at BHP.

I have done reviews of all the four cards mentioned in this category. Click on the links below to read more.

Citibank Cash Back Platinum. This card offers Purchase Protection Plan. The bad thing about this card is that the cash back is credited based on blocks of RM50.

HSBC MPower Visa Platinum - this is a pure cash back card. This card is no good for clubbing but it does give you Travel Insurance and Purchase Protection Plan. HSBC promotions are always tied to spending and contests where you need to sms which I dislike.

UOB Platinum Visa One Card - the benefits of this card was revamped in July 2011 and is now truly a pure cash back card. The main benefit of this card is you get 5% cash back at ALL Petrol Station and if you pump petrol at BHP this card will benefit you most.

UOB Lady's Card - men can't have it. Wonder if a man goes for sex change will he then qualify for it even though the NRIC still state as male???

CONCLUSION

So which is the best platinum credit card in Malaysia? Well, there isn't one, really. The FREE FOR LIFE Maybankard 2 Platinum is good compared to other Platinum cards in general but it is not the best because you cannot use it at most Petronas Stations and you don't get free entry to airport lounge. I hope by giving you the info above, you can decide which is the best Platinum card for you.

There is also another credit card that can compliment any of the above Platinum credit cards, and the card is called OCBC Titanium MasterCard. The annual income requirement for the OCBC Titanium MasterCard is the same as the UOB Platinum One Card at RM36K/year. The OCBC TMC is a pure cash back card which earns you 1% cash back for all transactions with the exception of Dining, Utilities, Groceries, Telco and Petrol where you earn 5% cash back. Click here to read about the OCBC Titanium MasterCard.

There are many more Platinum cards out there in the market but I doubt the benefits can beat Maybankard 2 Platinum Cards or American Express Platinum credit card standard card features. My recommendation is that everyone should have a Maybankard 2 American Express where we get 5X Treats Points for every RM1 spent plus 5% cash back capped at RM50/month for weekends. And if the merchant do not accept AMEX card, then you get to use the Maybankard 2 Visa or MasterCard.

Click here to learn about Platinum credit cards that grant your FREE access to KLIA and LCCT Plaza Premium Lounge.