High Inflation Era... Credit Card Products with Soaring Issuance Volume

Issuance of Cards Offering Discounts/Points on Fuel and Daily Life Expenses Surges

[Asia Economy Reporter Yu Je-hoon] In the era of high inflation, the issuance of credit cards offering discounts and reward benefits on daily necessities and fuel has significantly increased.

According to Shinhan Card on the 4th, the issuance of the 'GS Prime Shinhan Card' in April-May increased by 114% compared to January-February. The GS Prime Shinhan Card is a private label credit card (PLCC) product launched last August by Shinhan Card and GS Retail.

The increase in issuance of this card is due to its provision of discount and reward benefits suitable for the high inflation era. In fact, the payment amount using this card also increased by about 52% during the same period.

At all GS Retail online and offline platforms such as GS25, GS The Fresh, GS Shop, and GS Fresh Mall, 5% of the payment amount is accumulated as GS&Points without any conditions or limits, and up to 20% discount is provided when purchasing card discount event products.

A Shinhan Card official stated, "It is interpreted that the reason customers are paying attention is because of the provision of exceptional benefits in the distribution sector, where consumption is hard to reduce amid rising domestic prices due to international supply chain instability caused by recent wars."

As gasoline and diesel prices have recently surged to around 2,000 KRW per liter, the issuance of fuel discount card products is also increasing. For example, Samsung Card’s 'Samsung iD Energy Card' is reported to have seen a recent surge in issuance. This card offers a 10,000 KRW discount on the card bill when paying 10,000 KRW or more at gas stations, with up to three discounts per month depending on the previous month’s performance. In addition to fuel, it provides a 10% discount on electric vehicle charging fees and discounts on public transportation, taxis, parking/driver services, and highway tolls.

At Shinhan Card, the 'Deep Oil Card' launched in 2018 is receiving renewed attention. The issuance of this card last month increased by 32.6% compared to December last year. The Deep Oil Card allows customers to select one of the four oil companies?GS Caltex, SK Energy, S-Oil, or Hyundai Oilbank?and receive a 10% discount on usage at the selected oil company. The selected oil company can be changed once a year, and the card also offers various discounts in vehicle-related areas, convenience stores, coffee shops, taxis, and movies.

Additionally, Hana Card’s MULTI Oil mobile card provides a 10% discount at the four major gas stations. This includes LPG charging amounts and offers a maximum monthly billing discount of 30,000 KRW.