Devaluation Yes Bank Credit Card Devaluation - Now Spend 1L to Get Free Lounge Access

[TechnoFinoTechnoFino is verified member.]

Hey TFCians,

Now it’s Yes Bank, and they’re raising the spending requirements to get complimentary airport lounge access. Several Yes Bank credit cards have been devalued, making it necessary to spend a significant amount each quarter to qualify. And some changes regarding reward point redemption.

Here are the details:

Airport Lounge Access:
Effective from April 1, 2025, you’ll need to meet a spending threshold in the previous quarter (Dec 21 - Mar 20 | Mar 21 - Jun 20 | Jun 21 - Sep 20 | Sep 21 - Dec 20) to qualify for complimentary lounge access in the following quarter (Apr 1 - Jun 30 | Jul 1 - Sep 30 | Oct 1 - Dec 31 | Jan 1 - Mar 31).

• Yes Bank MARQUEE/RESERV Credit Card: Spend Rs. 1,00,000 in a quarter to receive complimentary airport lounge access.
• Yes Bank YES First Preferred/YES First Business Credit Card: Spend Rs. 75,000 in a quarter.
• Yes Bank ELITE+/SELECT/BYOC/WELLNESS PLUS/YES Prosperity Business Credit Card: Spend Rs. 50,000 in a quarter.

Please Note:

• The number of complimentary lounge accesses remains the same, subject to meeting the spending threshold.
• This threshold applies only for complimentary access to domestic lounges (within India).

YES Rewardz Points Redemption – effective December 1, 2024

1. Yes Private & Private Prime Credit Cards: Redeem up to 70% of the total invoice value or 6,00,000 YES Rewardz points (whichever is lower) per calendar month on flights and hotels.
2. For MARQUEE Credit Cards: Redeem up to 70% of the total invoice value or 3,00,000 YES Rewardz points (whichever is lower) per calendar month on flights and hotels.
3. For RESERV Credit Cards: Redeem up to 70% of the total invoice value or 2,00,000 YES Rewardz points (whichever is lower) per calendar month on flights and hotels.
4. For Other Credit Cards: Redeem up to 70% of the total invoice value or 1,00,000 YES Rewardz points (whichever is lower) per calendar month on flights and hotels.

Important: The above changes in YES Rewardz redemption are in addition to the existing cap of 50% of available YES Rewardz points when redeeming against gift vouchers and statement credit.

This move by Yes Bank was something everyone anticipated. After ICICI Bank’s similar change, I predicted that most banks would follow this trend of imposing high quarterly spending requirements for complimentary airport lounge access. Don’t be surprised if other banks also increase their spending requirements for lounge access—even RuPay now requires spending for lounge privileges.
I’ve posted a thread on “Free Airport Lounge Access Using Credit Cards: How It Works.” You can check it out for insights into why banks want you to spend to access free lounge benefits.
The 70% cap on reward point redemption isn’t new either; HDFC Bank introduced similar restrictions on their premium credit cards long ago. This change shouldn’t be a big issue, as most people use their Yes Bank reward points for gift vouchers anyway. In short, these changes were expected, and it’s likely that other banks will, unfortunately, follow this trend soon.

 

[Zacobite]

Lounge access with spend threshold of 1L.per qtr
70% cap on points usage / 3 L points per month limit.

Yes has lost it and is now a NO for me.

Attached the joke called YES
@SSV
@TechnoFino

 

[Shoxie]

Lounge access with spend threshold of 1L.per qtr
70% cap on points usage / 3 L points per month limit.

Yes has lost it and is now a NO for me.

Attached the joke called YES
@SSV
@TechnoFino

Oh yeah, 70-30 is going to come to other premium cards also.

Spend based lounge access on this card is a joke though.

 

[LiamHouse]

not even a month after i get the card, the bank pulls this lmao

 

[TechnoFi]

Lounge access with spend threshold of 1L.per qtr
70% cap on points usage / 3 L points per month limit.

Yes has lost it and is now a NO for me.

Attached the joke called YES
@SSV
@TechnoFino

Very Bad News, every bank following same negative path.

 

[coolguy1]

Seeing what Yes Bank had gone through, glad I stayed away.

 

[sam1803]

Thankfully did not activate the Marquee yet. For approx 12k fees they are having spend based criteria. I don't know what vision they have. Maybe to be successful in mass cancellation of their cards.

 

[Hell_Kitty]

RIP Marquee and Yes Bank

 

[amitr29]

Lounge access with spend threshold of 1L.per qtr
70% cap on points usage / 3 L points per month limit.

Yes has lost it and is now a NO for me.

Attached the joke called YES
@SSV
@TechnoFino

Funny thing is that lower variant cards have lower spend threshold for lounges 😂

 

[pgarg24]

I have reserv and 70% of invoice value is such a big deval.. I preferred using reserve over dcb since full invoices can be paid through RPs..

 

[KLB@96]

stupid bank charging 12k and asking to spend for lounge access

 

[amitagl27]

Feeling lucky..got this card when they were giving ~15k on joining benefits around 4 months back. Maxed out my benefits of Marquee in last three months 🙂 including lounge utilisation (used 5 times already this quarter). Redeemed all my points on Swiggy/Zomato vouchers already.

Stopped using it since last 2 months and I know what to do at the end of first year.
😀

 

[Zacobite]

Feeling lucky..got this card when they were giving ~15k on joining benefits around 4 months back. Maxed out my benefits of Marquee in last three months 🙂 including lounge utilisation (used 5 times already this quarter). Redeemed all my points on Swiggy/Zomato vouchers already.

Stopped using it since last 2 months and I know what to do at the end of first year.
😀

agreee.. they have killed their golden goose

 

[Kapil620]

Do they still give 60k reward points on card activation for marquee ?

 

[SSV]

Lounge access with spend threshold of 1L.per qtr
70% cap on points usage / 3 L points per month limit.

Yes has lost it and is now a NO for me.

Attached the joke called YES
@SSV
@TechnoFino

Yes, it is very bad from the card perspective,
.

but a very good sign to ease the rush at the lounges.
After all the banks implement these changes it will truly become a benefit with some sort of exclusivity , which is good for long term.

In this case, people will take and spend only on those cards which are suitable for their life styles.. won't take every single card that is offered to them which is good for both banks and customers..

 

[KLB@96]

Do they still give 60k reward points on card activation for marquee ?

it is 40 k

 

[Harry1]

This change shouldn’t be a big issue, as most people use their Yes Bank reward points for gift vouchers anyway.

Only Marquee users redeem them for vouchers. Most people redeem them for flights only, as vouchers get 0.1 per point for other cards.

 

[Slayer]

This change shouldn’t be a big issue, as most people use their Yes Bank reward points for gift vouchers anyway.

Only Marquee users redeem them for vouchers. Most people redeem them for flights only, as vouchers get 0.1 per point for other cards.

I'd prefer to use my Marquee joining rps for flights as it would yield a better value than getting vouchers

 

[KLB@96]

when is this devaluation takes affect ?

 

[Swastik]

So Yes first private remains untouched.....