Now it's ICICI Bank's turn—they've joined the 2024 devaluation party. Here’s a simplified breakdown of the changes:
[**Rubyx or higher variant cards: ICICI Bank Rubyx Visa Credit Card, ICICI Bank Rubyx RuPay Credit Card, ICICI Bank Rubyx Visa Credit Card, ICICI Rubyx Master PLT Chip Card, ICICI Rubyx PLT Credit Card (AMEX), ICICI Bank LeadtheNew Rubyx Credit Card, Rubyx Credit Card, ICICI Bank Secured Rubyx MasterCard Credit Card, Rubyx VISA expense card, ICICI Bank Sapphiro Visa Credit Card, ICICI Bank NRI Sapphiro Credit Card, ICICI Bank Sapphiro RuPay Credit Card, ICICI Bank Sapphiro VISA Credit Card, ICICI Sapphiro Master PLT Chip Card, ICICI Sapphiro Card (Amex), ICICI Bank LeadtheNew Sapphiro Credit Card, ICICI Bank NRI Sapphiro Credit Card, ICICI Bank Emeralde Visa Credit Card , ICICI Bank Emeralde Credit Card, ICICI Bank Emeralde Private]
Additionally, they've updated the late payment fees, interest rate (APR), and increased the markup fee to 2% for Emeralde and Emeralde Private Metal credit cards.
This devaluation is outrageous. ICICI Bank already offers one of the lowest reward rates across all their credit cards compared to other banks in the same category. Capping reward points for utility and government spends is understandable, but charging fees for add-on cards, even for super-premium cards like Emeralde private metal, is hard to justify. Now, customers need to spend Rs. 75K in a quarter to get complimentary lounge access, which is a very high requirement.
If you closely examine point 4 and point 10, ICICI Bank's hypocrisy becomes clear. They offer fuel surcharge waivers up to Rs. 50K for Coral and lower variant cards and Rs. 100K for Rubyx and higher variant cards, yet they charge an extra 1% fee for fuel spends over Rs. 10K. It’s absurd, and they haven't clarified whether this 1% fee applies to a single transaction over Rs. 10K or cumulative transactions exceeding that amount. Same with 1% extra fees on utility transactions, their t&c is not clear as usual.
Overall, this is a brutal devaluation. I hope people switch to other banks, as ICICI doesn't offer significant rewards on card spends anyway.
- Utility & Insurance Capping:
You will continue to earn reward points for utility and insurance spends up to Rs. 80,000 at the current earn rate on Rubyx and higher variant cards*.
For Coral and lower variant cards**, the cap is Rs. 40,000 for both utility and insurance spends - Grocery Capping:
Earn reward points for grocery and departmental store spends up to Rs. 40,000 per month on Rubyx or higher variant cards.
The cap is Rs. 20,000 per month for Coral or lower variant cards. - No Reward Points on Government-Related Spends. (Fees on Emeralde private metal card - unclear)
- Fuel Surcharge Waiver:
Waiver applies to fuel spends up to Rs. 50,000 per month for all cards except ICICI Emeralde Private Metal.
For the Emeralde Private Metal card, the waiver limit is Rs. 1,00,000 per month. - Spa Access Discontinued:
Spa access through DreamFolks card is discontinued for all cards. - Exclusion of Rent, Government, and Education Payments:
These payments are excluded from spend thresholds for annual fee reversal and milestone benefits on all cards. - Spend Threshold for Annual Fee Reversal Reduced to 10L:
The threshold for annual fee reversal is reduced to Rs. 10 lakh per annum from Rs. 15 lakh for ICICI Emeralde and Emeralde Private Metal credit cards. - 1% Fee on Education Payments via Third Party:
No fee for direct payments to schools or colleges, including international payments, but a 1% fee applies to education payments made through third-party apps. - applicable on all cards. - 1% Fee on Utility Transactions Over Rs. 50,000. - applicable on all cards.
- 1% Fee on Fuel Transactions Over Rs. 10,000. - applicable on all cards.
- Add-on Fee of Rs. 199:
Supplementary cardholders will now have an annual fee of Rs. 199. - applicable on all cards. - INR 75K Quarterly Spend for Domestic Lounge Access:
To enjoy complimentary airport lounge access, you need to spend Rs. 75,000 in the preceding quarter. - applicable for all cards except ICICI Emeralde and Emeralde Private Metal.
[**Rubyx or higher variant cards: ICICI Bank Rubyx Visa Credit Card, ICICI Bank Rubyx RuPay Credit Card, ICICI Bank Rubyx Visa Credit Card, ICICI Rubyx Master PLT Chip Card, ICICI Rubyx PLT Credit Card (AMEX), ICICI Bank LeadtheNew Rubyx Credit Card, Rubyx Credit Card, ICICI Bank Secured Rubyx MasterCard Credit Card, Rubyx VISA expense card, ICICI Bank Sapphiro Visa Credit Card, ICICI Bank NRI Sapphiro Credit Card, ICICI Bank Sapphiro RuPay Credit Card, ICICI Bank Sapphiro VISA Credit Card, ICICI Sapphiro Master PLT Chip Card, ICICI Sapphiro Card (Amex), ICICI Bank LeadtheNew Sapphiro Credit Card, ICICI Bank NRI Sapphiro Credit Card, ICICI Bank Emeralde Visa Credit Card , ICICI Bank Emeralde Credit Card, ICICI Bank Emeralde Private]
Additionally, they've updated the late payment fees, interest rate (APR), and increased the markup fee to 2% for Emeralde and Emeralde Private Metal credit cards.
This devaluation is outrageous. ICICI Bank already offers one of the lowest reward rates across all their credit cards compared to other banks in the same category. Capping reward points for utility and government spends is understandable, but charging fees for add-on cards, even for super-premium cards like Emeralde private metal, is hard to justify. Now, customers need to spend Rs. 75K in a quarter to get complimentary lounge access, which is a very high requirement.
If you closely examine point 4 and point 10, ICICI Bank's hypocrisy becomes clear. They offer fuel surcharge waivers up to Rs. 50K for Coral and lower variant cards and Rs. 100K for Rubyx and higher variant cards, yet they charge an extra 1% fee for fuel spends over Rs. 10K. It’s absurd, and they haven't clarified whether this 1% fee applies to a single transaction over Rs. 10K or cumulative transactions exceeding that amount. Same with 1% extra fees on utility transactions, their t&c is not clear as usual.
Overall, this is a brutal devaluation. I hope people switch to other banks, as ICICI doesn't offer significant rewards on card spends anyway.
