Kona I Launches Travel Zero Card... "Travel Without Worrying About Fees"

Kona I announced on the 7th that it has launched the 'Travel Zero Card (TRAVEL ZERO),' a card specialized for overseas use that allows payments without currency exchange or payment fees when traveling abroad or making direct overseas purchases.

The Travel Zero Card can be used at domestic credit card merchants. Overseas, it is a domestic and international dual-use prepaid card that can be used at Mastercard merchants. You can charge the desired amount onto the card without separate currency exchange and make payments abroad immediately.

Unlike other overseas travel specialized cards that require pre-exchange and charging in the foreign currency of the travel destination, there is no need for currency exchange. If you charge in Korean won, it is automatically converted in real-time to US dollars (USD) at the time of overseas payment with a 100% favorable exchange rate, meaning you can pay immediately without currency exchange fees. Since the overseas payment amount is immediately known in Korean won, users can have a higher sense of spending control, enabling more planned overseas travel expenses. Additionally, there is no need to exchange leftover balances after travel, so expensive re-exchange fees are also avoided.

Also, the overseas service fee (0.25% of the payment amount) and international brand fee (1% of the payment amount) that customers usually bear when making payments at overseas online and offline merchants are waived. When withdrawing cash from overseas ATMs, the withdrawal fee ($3 per transaction) is also exempted. Furthermore, when making payments at all domestic merchants, a 0.3% cashback is provided unconditionally regardless of the previous month's performance or accumulation limits, along with benefits such as a 15% discount at Coffee Bean.

The Travel Zero Card can be applied for in two types, including or excluding domestic transportation cards, through the Kona Card app starting today, with no annual fee. It also supports contactless payment (EMV Contactless) based on international standards for payment technology. This refers to transactions using near-field communication (NFC) payment devices, which is very useful for many contactless overseas payment methods and allows payment for overseas public transportation without purchasing a separate transportation card.

Jincheol Kim, head of Kona I's Payment Platform Business Division, said, “The Travel Zero Card is Kona I’s first overseas payment service, launched with the purpose of resolving the concerns about exchange rates and the hassle of currency exchange, which were taken for granted when traveling abroad, through technology and service. We expect it to change the paradigm of overseas payments by allowing charging in Korean won and immediate overseas payments. In the future, we will continue to provide differentiated services by expanding payment services, such as launching business trip expense cards and foreigner-only cards for domestic travel.”