Help choosing Forex card

[Fan ruie]

It’s my first international trip , will be visiting Japan in month of July-August. I did some research on Forex cards , most of the posts are quite old and don’t know the current situation - most people recommend Niyo card but later saw the SBM international transaction were blocked. Niyo also offers forex card from another bank - Equitas , there isn’t much reviews about it online .
If you have any other card recommendations please let me know -
PS - I think CC won’t be of much use as I’m a student , have one from SBI with monthly limit of 15k. If any other bank offers CC that could have higher limit , do comment

 

[codenerd]

Basically with 50k initial deposit you get megastar...
3%cb on 3 brand+ free visa signature dc with zero forex & 0 international atm fee.

I recommend you getting the 50k ip..
If you planning to open account use my code rr779172
😁😁

If you are going in international travel keep two dc...

Sounds good. Do we have zero MAB even after 50k IP?

Also, have you personally used this card?

 

[AritraSaha]

Sounds good. Do we have zero MAB even after 50k IP?

Also, have you personally used this card?

Ita zero balance account...

Yeah... used it couple of times.

 

[codenerd]

I have found out some info about Niyo Global cards. I will create a fresh thread dedicated towards Niyo global cards with latest news. There too much unorganised content regarding niyo global cards.

 

[avishj]

I have found out some info about Niyo Global cards. I will create a fresh thread dedicated towards Niyo global cards with latest news. There too much unorganised content regarding niyo global cards.

Here's a file that summarises their latest offerings. If you need more info lmk, I have contacts at Niyo's community team. P.S.: Customer support is a bit weak on bank's end, so be careful.

 

[Sonic Investor]

Here's a file that summarises their latest offerings. If you need more info lmk, I have contacts at Niyo's community team. P.S.: Customer support is a bit weak on bank's end, so be careful.

This was good, thanks!

 

[pankaj_ji]

That's a good option which I've personally used but, it seems you cannot reduce the limit by withdrawing the incremental FDs created.

So, you end up blocking the amount after the trip is over & cannot bring it down to maintain the minimum 5K.

closing any of the FD will close the card as told by customer care

 

[hs23]

I closed my SBM account and Now I am able to apply for Niyo Equitas.

I think we need not close the SBM account. We can open a new equitas Niyo account. Just contact customer care chat and ask them to redirect you to Equitas team.

I have existing Freo save Equitas account. I want to close it and apply for Niyo Equitas account.

NIYO Customer service said: Once you close existing Equitas account after 8 year only you are eligible to create an Equitas account.

Any one here has been successful to do otherwise?

 

[Satish]

even i used the bookmyforex yes bank forex card recently on my trip and it was quite good, apart from the loading time req, everything was on point!

Does this card reflect in CIBIL? Reason I'm asking is that tripmoney forex card issued by SBM was reflecting as credit card in CIBIL.

 

[R!ppEr]

Does this card reflect in CIBIL? Reason I'm asking is that tripmoney forex card issued by SBM was reflecting as credit card in CIBIL.

as far as i remember it doesnt

 

[TheGambler]

Niyo global has gone down the drain. SBM credit card will charge 2.5% or 500+gst whichever is higher on cash withdrawal from 17/11/2023.
Equitas debit card has increased cash withdrawal from international ATM to 422.88+GST.
IDFC WOW cc seems the best choice as of now.

 

[CARDBITRAGE]

Niyo global has gone down the drain. SBM credit card will charge 2.5% or 500+gst whichever is higher on cash withdrawal from 17/11/2023.
Equitas debit card has increased cash withdrawal from international ATM to 422.88+GST.
IDFC WOW cc seems the best choice as of now.

Well, what can you expect from a card having zero joining and annual fee, and zero forex charges? Their SA is zero MAB as well. Their investors would like to see profits one day or another. XD
IMO, this is still a great option considering the competition and their offerings.

 

[TheGambler]

Well, what can you expect with a card having zero joining and annual fee, and zero forex charges? Their SA is zero MAB as well. Their investors would like to see profits one day or another. XD
IMO, this is still a great option considering the competition and their offerings.

I think that IDFC wow credit card won't change, since it's fd backed, zero forex is the usp of the wow card and IDFC is already a pretty big bank and is not dependent on a single card. Let's see.

 

[CARDBITRAGE]

I think that IDFC wow credit card won't change, since it's fd backed, zero forex is the usp of the wow card and IDFC is already a pretty big bank and is not dependent on a single card. Let's see.

But your money is stuck with them as it is a secured card. By keeping an fd with them you are losing anywhere from 5-10%(accounting for tax). So for a 1L limit, that translates to 5-10k in lost income. So either way, you are indirectly paying a fee. Also, a cash withdrawal fee of Rs.199+GST will apply
It is a great card though as it has visa infinite benefits, fraud liability, reward on spends(0.6%), and RSA.

 

[TheGambler]

But your money is stuck with them as it is a secured card. By keeping an fd with them you are losing anywhere from 5-10%(accounting for tax). So for a 1L limit, that translates to 5-10k in lost income. So either way, you are indirectly paying a fee. Also, a cash withdrawal fee of Rs.199+GST will apply
It is a great card though as it has visa infinite benefits, fraud liability, reward on spends(0.6%), and RSA.

For me, it makes sense. I have made a 50k fd for the card, more than sufficient for atm withdrawal, I'll just pay the card bill if I need more money from IDFC savings account instantly. I'll use Infinia for swiping. I don't care about the blocked amount, since I'd consider that amount to be invested in debt/cash. Need some low-risk investment either way.