Devaluation ICICI Bank Credit Cards: Major Devaluation Announced (Effective Jan–Feb 2026)

[TechnoFinoTechnoFino is verified member.]

Hey TFCians,
ICICI Bank has officially announced multiple changes across almost its entire credit card portfolio.
This is not a single hit - it’s a layered devaluation impacting rewards, benefits, fees, and overall usage freedom.

ICICI Bank credit cards were already weak when it came to meaningful benefits and reward earning. After these changes, the value proposition has taken an even bigger hit - for many users, it’s almost over.

I’ve broken down the impact card-wise and category-wise below.

🔴 1. Reward Points on Transportation Spends – Now CAPPED​

🟢 Premium Segment​

ICICI Bank Emeralde Metal Credit Card
• Reward points on transportation MCCs (4111, 4112, 4784, 4131)
• Capped at ₹20,000 per month
Earlier → uncapped earning
Now → monthly ceiling introduced

​

🟡 Upper Mid & Premium (Non-Metal)​

Applicable cards:

• ICICI Bank Rubyx Credit Card
• ICICI Bank Secured Rubyx Credit Card
• ICICI Bank Sapphiro Credit Card
• ICICI Bank Emeralde Credit Card
• ICICI Bank Emeralde Private Credit Card

• Transportation reward earning capped at ₹10,000 per month
• Reward points depend on MCC mapping
This directly affects:
Metro users, frequent travellers, cab-heavy users.

​

🔵 Entry & Mass Cards​

Applicable cards:

• ICICI Bank Coral (all variants incl. NRI & Secured)
• ICICI Bank Platinum / Platinum Chip / Instant Platinum
• ICICI Bank HPCL Platinum & Coral variants
• ICICI Bank Manchester United Cards
• Chennai Super Kings ICICI Bank Card
• ICICI Bank Expressions
• ICICI Bank Parakram / Parakram Select

• Transportation rewards capped at ₹10,000/month
• Lower earn rate + lower cap = double hit

​

🔴 2. Insurance Spend Reward Cap​

ICICI Bank HPCL Super Saver Credit Card
• Reward points only up to ₹40,000 insurance spend
• MCCs covered: 5960, 6300, 6381, 6399
Earlier → higher or unclear cap
Now → clearly restricted

​

🔴 3. BookMyShow Benefits – Downgraded or Removed​

❌ Benefit Discontinued Completely​

ICICI Bank HPCL Super Saver Credit Card
• Complimentary BookMyShow benefit removed
• Zero movie value going forward

⚠️ Spend-Based Unlock Introduced​

Applicable cards:

• ICICI Bank Instant Platinum / Instant Platinum Chip
• Coral, Rubyx, Sapphiro, Emeralde (most variants)
• Adani One Platinum & Signature
• MakeMyTrip ICICI Cards
• Manchester United Cards
• CSK ICICI Card

• Must spend ₹25,000 in previous quarter
• Only then BMS benefit active for next quarter
Earlier → automatic
Now → conditional

​

🔴 4. NEW Transaction Fees Introduced (Applicable on All Retail Cards- Times Black, EPM, etc.)​

This is a big behavioural change.

🎮 Gaming / Fantasy Platforms​

• 2% fee on platforms like:
Dream11, MPL, Rummy Culture, Junglee Games
• MCC: 5816 (and future similar MCCs)

💰 Wallet Loading​

• 1% fee on wallet loads ₹5,000+
• Applies to:
Amazon Pay, Paytm, MobiKwik, Freecharge, OlaMoney
• MCC: 6540
Wallet rotation strategies → effectively killed.

🚆 Transportation Overspend Fee​

• 1% fee if transportation spends exceed ₹50,000
Earlier → just reward cap
Now → actual penalty

​

🔴 5. Forex / DCC Charges Revised (Jan 15, 2026)​

Card	New DCC Fee
Times Black ICICI	1.49%
Emeralde Metal / Emeralde / Emeralde Private	2.00%
MakeMyTrip ICICI Travel	0.99%
Amazon Pay ICICI	1.99%
All Other ICICI Cards	3.50%

For most ICICI cards → foreign spends just became expensive.

​

🔴 6. Add-On Card Now Paid​

ICICI Bank Emeralde Metal Credit Card
• New add-on cards issued on or after 15 Jan 2026
• ₹3,500 one-time fee
Luxury positioning → monetised.

​

🔴 7. Cash Payment Penalty Increased​

Cash payment at ICICI branches:
₹100 → ₹150 per transaction
Another push away from offline bill payments.

​

🔴 8. EMI Foreclosure Charges Introduced​

Cancelling an EMI mid-tenure will now attract foreclosure charges
Earlier flexibility removed
Important for people who convert spends casually into EMIs.

​

My Honest Take​

This is not a single devaluation,
this is ICICI restructuring card usage behaviour.
They are clearly saying:
• Spend less on wallets & gaming
• Track category caps
• Pay for premium privileges
• Don’t treat ICICI cards as all-rounders anymore

ICICI Bank is clearly saying - we don’t want to be your primary card.
Go ahead, get yourself a new main credit card.

Anyway, let’s be honest.
ICICI credit cards were, are, and will remain among the weakest cards in terms of reward earning.
Their real use has always been limited to instant online brand discounts - nothing more.

If you’re still using an ICICI card as your primary card, this devaluation is your sign to move on.

 

[Strange]

💰 Wallet Loading​

• 1% fee on wallet loads ₹5,000+

Not applicable on Amazon Pay ICICI credit card right?

 

[theflash]

those fees are for all retail cards

I meant the capping for TB is 50k as mentioned in email...

 

[TechnoFinoTechnoFino is verified member.]

Not applicable on Amazon Pay ICICI credit card right?

They have mentioned all retail cards, so it should also include Amazon pay card.

 

[theflash]

Hope Times black is excluded from devaluation.

It is a part of the Devaluation too...

 

[bing1309]

Offers spend based ok, now transportation is capped ? Just imagine you use credit card for vehicle purchase or vehicle maintenance or uber Ola etc that's going to be a massive hit. This will not stop here, wait and watch every daily spends which we are doing in credit card will be capped and an interest will be levied.... mark it, save it 😂

 

[Mekala ManojKumar]

It is a part of the Devaluation too...

Only Dynamic Currency Conversion Fee revised from 1% to 1.49%

 

[Dr. Hritaban]

Offers spend based ok, now transportation is capped ? Just imagine you use credit card for vehicle purchase or vehicle maintenance or uber Ola etc that's going to be a massive hit. This will not stop here, wait and watch every daily spends which we are doing in credit card will be capped and an interest will be levied.... mark it, save it 😂

Well, we’ll be going back to old plain simole UPI again then lmao. But genuinely, the only use of these shietty ICICI cards are for the spend based offers

 

[nikhilv0303]

There is no change to points earning, as far as I can see.

But there are 2 big changes:
1. Add on cards now come with a hefty 3.5K one-time fee per card (still some time, if you were ever planning to apply for it)

2. BOGO upto 750 on Bookmyshow is now conditional on spends of 25K in the preceding quarter. TBH, it makes zero sense on a super premium card. Looks like ICIC thought - Infinia does not give free movie tickets. So why should we keep doing this? Let's apply spend based criteria on EPM as well.

Afterall, it is almost like ICICI just wants to keep EPM an inch ahead of Infinia somehow. Doesn't look like the other rewards are going to last long on EPM at this rate. iShop devaluations are highly likely too pretty soon.

25k quarterly on EPM should be piece of cake.

I can understand folks who own Sapphiro may not be spending 25k quarterly on it. But everyone who owns EPM will be spending about a lakh per monthly easily.

Yeah, you're right.

Especially when you're buying vouchers, even if no such big expenses are there in one such quarter you can easily meet that. So probably not a very big deal, but it does set some precedence for future devaluations like this - like lounge access, for example. Sounds unlikely at this moment as ICICI still wants EPM to compete with Infinia, but this is an indication that they'd continue to make devaluations.

I actually have Sapphiro too, came LTF when I had opened an account with them years back. That becomes useless for me, atleast.

For EPM BoGo still remains unconditional. The email doesn’t mention anything about BOGO

 

[altair21]

Your Credit Card - New Updates!

Key updates regarding rewards & charges - ICICI Bank Sapphiro Visa Credit Card

Dear Customer,

This is to notify you about the upcoming changes to the features and charges of your ICICI Bank Sapphiro Visa Credit Card XXXXXX.

Reward Points effective 01-Feb-26
• You will continue to earn reward points on the transactions carried out via the Transportation Merchant Category (MCC: 4111, 4112, 4784 and 4131), up to spends of ₹20,000 per month.

Revision in BookMyShow offers, effective 15-Jan-26
• Continue to enjoy your favourite movies and events with BookMyShow offers on your Credit Card by spending ₹25,000 or more in the preceding quarter.
For example: To enjoy the offer in Apr 2026, May 2026 and Jun 2026, spend ₹25,000 between Dec 26, 2025 and Mar 25, 2026. This cycle will repeat every quarter.

Update on Transaction Fee, effective 15-Jan-26
• 2% fee will be levied on transactions carried out on gaming platforms such as (but not limited to) Dream11, Rummy Culture, Junglee Games and MPL. The fee will apply to transactions carried out from Merchant Category Code (MCC) 5816 or any other MCC Introduced in the future, for similar types of transactions

• 1% fee will apply on transaction amounts of ₹5,000 or more when loading funds onto third-party wallets such as (but not limited to) Amazon Pay, Paytm, MobiKwik, Freecharge and OlaMoney. The fee will apply to transactions carried out through Merchant Category Code (MCC) 6540 or any other MCC introduced in the future for similar types of transactions

• A fee of 1% of the transaction amount will be charged for transactions carried out through Transportation Merchant Category (MCC: 4111, 4112, 4784, 4131) exceeding ₹50,000.

Revision of Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) Fee, effective 15-Jan-26
• DCC fee, applicable on each international transaction carried out in Indian currency at international locations or transactions performed in Indian currency with merchants located in India but registered in a foreign nation, will be revised in line with the Forex mark-up charges of your Credit Card.

Present DCC Fee Revised DCC Fee
(same as Forex Mark-up Fee)
1% of the transaction amount 3.50% of the transaction amount

Revision of fees on cash payment at branches, effective 15-Jan-26
• Cash payment at branches for clearing the Credit Card dues will be revised from ₹100 per payment transaction to ₹150 per payment transaction.

New UPI ID for Credit Card Payments
• The current UPI ID has been replaced. Your new UPI ID will be in the following format:
ccpay.<10-digit mobile number><last 4 digits of card>@icici
For example, if your mobile number is 9999999999 and your card’s last 4 digits are 1234, your new UPI ID will be: ccpay.99999999991234@icici

EMI Foreclosure Charges
• Discontinuation/Cancellation of ongoing EMIs after opting for them at the time of purchase will now attract applicable foreclosure charges. For T&Cs, visit https://icici.co/ICICIT/k/DUvfEE9Q1cw

Credit Card Usage Guidelines
• Please note that your Credit Card is issued solely for personal expenses. Usage for commercial or resale purposes is prohibited. The Card should not be used for speculative, anti-social, money laundering or working capital purposes. Ensure your transactions are lawful and bona fide.
For further details, please refer to section- II (e) of Most Important Terms & Conditions.

Sincerely,
Team ICICI Bank\

RIP Sapphiro, dunno what ICICI is thinking, there's no point in getting an ICICI card now, even during sales, other bank cards usually match ICICI's offers

 

[vine]

Now ICICI cards have only one goal:
To help people reach 'overleveraged' status.

 

[2025]

Not applicable on Amazon Pay ICICI credit card right?

They have mentioned all retail cards, so it should also include Amazon pay card.

Don't remember exactly, but I think earlier also ICICI said no rewards for wallet load, still we were getting rewards for the same for Apay untill now.

Btw, no email received yet specifically for apay cc. For other cards got the email.

If they charge additional for wallet then this is the only thing would affect me to some extent. Free rotation (~0.5%) to chargeable (~1.5%). We need to have a 1.5% bill payment reward DC to cover this up.

Remaining ICICI cards were already dead for most of us. They are useful only for taking loan/debt or instant bank discounts.

 

[panu24]

We already have all icici credit card devaluation discussion going in

Devaluation Thread 'ICICI Bank Credit Cards: Major Devaluation Announced (Effective Jan–Feb 2026)'

Yesterday at 3:00 PM

Hey TFCians,
ICICI Bank has officially announced multiple changes across almost its entire credit card portfolio.
This is not a single hit - it’s a layered devaluation impacting rewards, benefits, fees, and overall usage freedom.

ICICI Bank credit cards were already weak when it came to meaningful benefits and reward earning. After these changes, the value proposition has taken an even bigger hit - for many users, it’s almost over.

I’ve broken down the impact card-wise and category-wise below.

🔴 1. Reward Points on Transportation Spends – Now CAPPED​

🟢 Premium Segment​

ICICI...

• TechnoFino
• bank bob card devaluation credit card devaluation emeralde icici icici bank credit card devaluation rupay rupay credit card sapphiro credit card
• Replies: 152
• Forum: ICICI Bank Credit Card

• 
• 

@BVC @vaibhav111

 

[Card doctor]

Thank God I did not take Sappahro credit card ( was getting life time free in view of Corportae tie up ) ..

 

[cardio_guycardio_guy is verified member.]

I think it is now safe to end the relationship with ICICI fully. These are my accounts with them -

• Amazon Pay ICICI LTF - My first credit card, got in 2022, but not used anymore. It has become a drawer card altogether.
• Sapphiro LTF - Was used only for BMS BOGO, now that is also spend based.
• Salary account - I opened a salary account last year, but moved to HDFC. HDFC is overall better than ICICI anytime.

This will be a good cleanup activity in to start 2026.

 

[sunit123]

Before taking "emotional" and "hasty" decision of cancellation, keep following important points in mind

1. ICICI wealth account is 0 MAB if you have CC with good limit...My savings account is 0 MAB....After cancellation, you might need to maintain MAB...This scheme is now discontinued for new customers.

Based on wealth account, i have LTF World DC on which 1 lounge access is free per quarter so it is indirect benefit.

2. My ICICI CC is 2nd oldest after HDFC i.e. took it in 2014 with 2nd highest limit of 15 lakhs....Cancellation of oldest and highest CC limit will immediately drop your CIBIL score

3. ICICI CC gives discount in almost all the sales...If it is LTF then keep them in drawer for sales benefit

4. I use priority pass for international lounge which is still not spend based

5. ICICI Sapphiro Amex versions gives instant 150 Rs discount on Swiggy on spend of just 699 Rs i.e. 21% discount once a month

6. ICICI sapphiro gives fuel surcharge benefit which is withdrawn by most of the cards.

7. ICICI sapphiro in iportal still gives 2% to 3% discount on some GV's which are not available anywhere else like Shell petrol pump GV

8. ICICI is liberal in no of CC you can hold...You can get even 10 CC from ICICI

9. LAST but not the least...even if you have 10 ICICI CC's, it is reported as only SINGLE entry except Amazon pay in CIBIL which is not the case with other banks.

I agree amazon pay is now most valuable card in ICICI kitty.

 

[abhiaj_geek]

Before taking "emotional" and "hasty" decision of cancellation, keep following important points in mind

1. ICICI wealth account is 0 MAB if you have CC with good limit...My savings account is 0 MAB....After cancellation, you might need to maintain MAB...This scheme is now discontinued for new customers.

Based on wealth account, i have LTF World DC on which 1 lounge access is free per quarter so it is indirect benefit.

2. My ICICI CC is 2nd oldest after HDFC i.e. took it in 2014 with 2nd highest limit of 15 lakhs....Cancellation of oldest and highest CC limit will immediately drop your CIBIL score

3. ICICI CC gives discount in almost all the sales...If it is LTF then keep them in drawer for sales benefit

4. I use priority pass for international lounge which is still not spend based

5. ICICI Sapphiro Amex versions gives instant 150 Rs discount on Swiggy on spend of just 699 Rs i.e. 21% discount once a month

6. ICICI sapphiro gives fuel surcharge benefit which is withdrawn by most of the cards.

7. ICICI sapphiro in iportal still gives 2% to 3% discount on some GV's which are not available anywhere else like Shell petrol pump GV

8. ICICI is liberal in no of CC you can hold...You can get even 10 CC from ICICI

9. LAST but not the least...even if you have 10 ICICI CC's, it is reported as only SINGLE entry except Amazon pay in CIBIL which is not the case with other banks.

Well put.

I agree amazon pay is now most valuable card in ICICI kitty.

Apart from epm, ofc.

 

[cardio_guycardio_guy is verified member.]

Before taking "emotional" and "hasty" decision of cancellation, keep following important points in mind

This is a beautiful summary of the small but important points. Great.

One more point to add - In BBPS bill payment system, you can pay how much ever more than the outstanding bill amount for ICICI.
For other banks, if you have already paid the bill, you can't pay more. BBPS will not allow to pay extra.
But only for ICICI, you can pre-pay even lakhs and keep.

 

[infinia_finally]

Had just got sapphiro LTF last month. Used BOGO offer once. Guess will keep the card anyways as it's LTF. I do use companion card rupay on UPI wherever allowed, just for convenience, not rewards

 

[sourpai]

Is there an option to convert ICICI Saphhiro Visa LTF to Rupay LTF? Has anyone called customer care and done it?

 

[altair21]

Is there an option to convert ICICI Saphhiro Visa LTF to Rupay LTF? Has anyone called customer care and done it?

no point imo, if you are looking for a rupay card, tata neu infinity rupay is way more useful