Hyeja Card Discontinued One After Another... Spotlight on No-Performance Premium Cards

The options for the thrifty spenders are narrowing as credit card products that offered good benefits with relatively low hurdles are being discontinued one after another. On top of that, the recent TMON and WEMAKEPRICE incidents have effectively halted 'Sangtech' (gift certificate + financial technology), bringing 'no-spending-requirement cards' into the spotlight.

According to the financial sector on the 15th, Shinhan Card recently stopped selling its Hi-Point, Deep Dream, and Deep Dream Platinum credit card products. The Hi-Point card, which has been popular since its launch in 2008, offered a 2% point accumulation benefit at all merchants when the previous month's spending reached 1.5 million KRW, and a 5% point accumulation benefit at department stores, marts, and overseas.

To make matters worse, Sangtech is also shrinking significantly due to the aftermath of the TMON and WEMAKEPRICE incidents. Sangtech refers to financial technology using gift certificates. It is a technique where gift certificates, sold at a discount below face value, are purchased with credit or debit cards (products that recognize gift certificate spending) and then cashed out to receive benefits such as discounts, points, or mileage, or to gain profit by using the gift certificates bought at a lower price.

As valuable cards are discontinued and Sangtech approaches its end, interest in no-spending-requirement cards that provide benefits without monthly spending conditions is growing. A representative product is the BC GOAT card. This product offers 1.5% points (Paybook Money) benefits at domestic merchants and 3.0% at overseas merchants for usage amounts up to 1 million KRW without any prior monthly spending requirement. For amounts exceeding 1 million KRW, 1.0% applies domestically and 2.0% overseas.

Hyundai Card's Zero Edition 3 card is also a representative no-spending-requirement accumulation-type product that provides 1.2% points (M Points) benefits at all merchants. Hana Card's OneQ Card accumulates 0.8% at all merchants and 1.8% when paying with OneQ Pay or using overseas. However, the monthly accumulation limit is 100,000 points (Hana Money). Payco's Payco Point Card, although a prepaid card, accumulates 0.5% for offline payments and 1% for online payments.

Discount and cashback products are also notable. Lotte Card's Digiroca London Card offers 0.7% cashback on all merchant payments without limits and adds 1.0% for instant payments. Woori Card's Jeongseok EVERY1 card provides a 0.8% discount on payments at all merchants and an additional 2% discount on online payments if the previous month's spending exceeds 400,000 KRW. Samsung Card's iD SIMPLE card offers a 0.7% discount without usage amount or limit restrictions at domestic and overseas merchants, and a 1.0% discount if the payment amount exceeds 100,000 KRW.

Consumers who frequently use products from specific companies might consider PLCC products. KB Kookmin Card's PLCC, Coupang Wow Card, launched in partnership with Coupang, accumulates 2% Coupang Cash on Coupang payments and 0.2% on other merchant payments without monthly spending requirements. Currently, during a promotion, 4% (additional 2%) is accumulated on Coupang payments and 1.2% (additional 1%) on other merchant payments. This card gained popularity, issuing 500,000 cards within seven months of launch.

If most spending occurs within the residential area, local currency is also worth considering. Seoul City's Seoul Love Gift Certificate offers a discount rate of 5-7%, and Busan's Dongbaekjeon provides 5-7% cashback depending on the merchant. Incheon City's i(e)um Card offers 5-10% cashback depending on the merchant, with a usage limit of 300,000 KRW. The discount and cashback rates of these local currencies are significantly higher than typical card products. However, users should carefully distinguish where they can use them and keep in mind that benefits are not available outside the region.