Hi Folks,
This is the journey of my how I finally got my Emeralde Private Metal. I applied and failed two times in past. Only succeeded third time.
Relationship with ICICI -
1. Sapphire LTF (Limit 20L)
2. Saving account (not wealth, just a regular one where I have to maintain 25K and I don't event maintain that and have been getting warning mail since last 3-4 months)
Attempt-1 (20/10/23) October Last year
I tried the day the card was launched. Went to bank. Salary criteria was met. Also option for Emeralde private metal was started to show in their system. Applied it. Thought I would get it within 5 days. But the nightmare had just started.
Application was put on hold and it was told you need tons of approval including those of zonal head and product head. They asked if I had TRV of 1Cr+..... I said that is not the case, salary criteria was met, existing card with high limit and a saving account was only there. No one replied. My RM also gave up after following ghost email threads for more than a month.
Attempt-2 (07/02/24) Feb
Tried a different branch in same state. This guy was confident if I am willing to take it paid I would get it. So I applied again. Same issue here too. They had over-inflated requirements. They asked me if I could switch to Wealth account. I asked them I can go though the hassle (mostly because I was sick of warning mails on my current account) but only if it guarantees the card. They took it up with higher zonal and product heads if there is a guarantee but again I was ghosted. 2 months no reply.
(Lesson - Wealth account is not the selection criteria but it surely helps the case to some extent)
Attempt-3 (22/07/24) July
Tried a third branch. The agent was confident again. But I didn't have much hope. He asked for relationship. Same questions again asked by heads. They also asked for Form 16 and Form 26AS, photo of my Sapphire Card and proof of limit (I had reduced my limit to minimum which is 10% of max limit provided, which was 10% of 20L = 2L) They asked me to increase it as it would be the foundation of my case. I increased it to 20L and they were able to verify it. He also said that internally they map 360 relationship and it should be more than 50000 points (god knows how it works but as a list it would denote how much money bank made from you annually)
Within next 3 days all 4 approvals including product head zonal head came. As it was already Friday so agent said he would apply on for card on Monday. Frankly I was so skeptical that I did not even believe it.
On Monday he asked me to come to branch and authorise it using the machine or signature for consent but as I am in Bengaluru, I told him I won't be able to come to branch at all.
He then asked senior for workaround and they said a written mail where I acknowledge this is a paid card and my willingness to Pay the Rs 12500 + gst. After that they also asked me to attach photo of my sapphire card in that mail. On Tuesday, I sent them all the mail and they confirmed that with all approvals already ready they would file the application on Wednesday (Today).
So today at 10 am I got a message that my application is under process. I checked on app and it was showing application initiated. Now here is the fun part, at around 1pm or 2pm, the card already reflected on my app. In application tracker, it was still showing initiated state so I was skeptical again if it can be still rejected somehow (trauma of last 2 times rejection). So my agent said that if I still have doubt then I can change the pin from app so that card will be considered activated. I was able to do it. (Please not that application was started just 3 hours before so it is surprising how fast they made it live)
I was still skeptical, so I made on final move. I enabled online transaction, bought something on amazon and payment was successful. Now they surely won't cancel otherwise I will get a free amazon shopping.
Jokes apart, it was long journey, nothing changed, same relationship with ICICI, same warning mails of non maintenance of balance. But third time my application got approved.
