Is a Visa Infinite Card still worth having?

In 2003, UOB became the first bank in Singapore to launch a Visa Infinite Card with the UOB Visa Infinite Card. The name might strike you as somewhat unimaginative, but in a way, it spoke volumes about the confidence the bank had in the Visa Infinite brand. 

After all, this was what The Straits Times called “an exceedingly exclusive card for the mega-rich”, targeting the top 0.1% of the elite circle in Singapore. The annual fee cost S$1,500, and there was a minimum income requirement of S$350,000- that may not sound very high to some of you ballers, but remember this was 20 years ago!

Fast forward to today, however, and Visa Infinite’s stock has fallen considerably. While it isn’t the case that just anybody can get one, there’s now more than a dozen cards on the market.

💳 Visa Infinite Cards in Singapore
Card	Min. Income	Annual Fee
BOC Visa Infinite	S$120,000	S$378 (FYF)
CIMB Visa Infinite	S$120,000	Free
Citi ULTIMA*	S$500,000	S$4,199
DBS Insignia	S$500,000	S$3,240
DBS Vantage	S$120,000	S$594
HBSC Visa Infinite	S$120,000	S$656
Maybank Visa Infinite	S$120,000	S$600 (FYF)
OCBC VOYAGE^	S$120,000	S$492.50
OCBC Premier Visa Infinite	S$30,000	Free
SCB Visa Infinite	S$150,000	S$594
UOB Privilege Banking Card	S$30,000	Free
UOB Reserve Card#	S$500,000	S$3,888
UOB Visa Infinite Metal Card	S$120,000	S$648
*All new applicants will only be eligible for the Mastercard version; existing cardholders can continue on the Visa platform ^Also comes in Premier, PPC and BOS variants, all of which have min. income of S$30,000 #And its dashing cousin, the UOB Reserve Diamond Card

It’s certainly true that banks still gatekeep membership- cardholders must earn at least S$120,000 a year, or have a privilege banking account. However, it’s certainly no longer the exclusive club it was two decades ago.

So is a Visa Infinite still worth having?

Well, it depends on which card you’re talking about. Each bank adds their own flair, so some Visa Infinites come packed with perks, while others are more threadbare. But there’s a core set of benefits that all Visa Infinites share, and that’s what I want to focus on in this post.

Avis President’s Club status

Visa Infinite cardholders are eligible for an instant upgrade to Avis President’s Club status, which grants benefits such as: 

• Priority service at the counter
• Priority rental car availability
• Free additional driver
• Single upgrade guaranteed at rail stations and airports, upon availability at downtown locations
• Double upgrade for select car classes upon availability on weekends

Do note that benefits vary by location, so the treatment you receive as a President’s Club member in Europe may be different from the USA. 

Even though Avis President’s Club is marketed as “by invitation only”, you might want to moderate your expectations. Avis has been very liberal with the invitations, such that PC members are almost a dime a dozen when renting from some airports. Based on my experiences so far, recognition has gone from excellent (served immediately, upgraded to a luxury vehicle) to non-existent (“what’s President’s Club?”)

But here’s the thing: you don’t need a Visa Infinite card to enjoy this perk, because it’s equally applicable to Visa Signature cardholders too. Yes, Visa Signature, which anyone can get with a minimum income of S$30,000.

Visa Infinite Golf

Visa Infinite Cardholders receive 50% off weekday golf at 50 participating golf clubs across Southeast Asia (basically, one paying guest must accompany the cardholder). 

The catch is that a maximum of 20 rounds per month are available to cardholders, and with so many Visa Infinite cards out there, slots go fast. Bookings must be made at least five working days in advance, and no more than 14 calendar days in advance, so that effectively means you can forget about playing in the second half of the month (since all slots will surely be taken by the time the booking window opens).

Sadly, the two Singapore clubs participating in this programme, Keppel Club and Warren Golf & Country Club, are currently not accepting cardholder bookings. 

However, there’s a separate Visa Infinite tie-up with Sentosa Golf Club which offers complimentary weekday golf with the same terms (one paying guest per cardholder). This is capped at four bookings per cardholder for the year, and one booking per month. 

Visa Luxury Hotel Collection

Visa Infinite (and Signature) Cardholders have access to the Visa Luxury Hotel Collection, comprised of more than 900 upscale hotels worldwide. Bookings made through this programme enjoy: 

• Automatic room upgrade upon arrival, when available
• Complimentary in-room Wi-Fi, when available
• Complimentary breakfast for two
• $25 USD food or beverage credit
• VIP Guest status
• Late check-out upon request, when available

Visa Infinite Cardholders enjoy an additional benefit at a smaller selection of ~200 hotels, which upgrades the amenities credit to US$100.

Now, I’m not convinced this is much of a perk, because the rates through this portal may be higher than the official website, even after adjusting for the value of the benefits. Moreover, these are basically luxury agent rates which can be booked through Classic Travel or HoteLux– no Visa Infinite Card necessary. 

Visa Infinite Concierge

All Visa Infinite Cardholders have access to the Visa Concierge, which can provide assistance with flight, hotel and activities bookings, restaurant reservations and itinerary planning. 

What I particularly like is that they’re available over WhatsApp. After a one-time registration exercise, it’s much easier to communicate here than over email.

I’ve used the concierge several times over the years, both for itinerary planning and restaurant bookings. They do a decent job of both, probably on par with any other card-provided concierge service I’ve tried.

It was particularly useful for booking restaurants in Japan. Obviously the Visa Infinite Concierge won’t be able to get you the kind of restaurants that require staying at high-end hotels, but for mid-range and casual eateries where language is a bigger barrier, it was a lifesaver. 

Back in 2017, I put the concierge through the paces with a series of tests, and the results were hit and miss. Granted, a lot of time has passed since then, but just for your reference:

Can the Visa Infinite concierge deliver?

A tier beyond Visa Infinite?

With so many Visa Infinite Cards on the market, differentiation has become a real problem. After all, there’s premium, and there’s premium- it’s probably safe to say the no-annual-fee CIMB Visa Infinite is a very different beast from the S$4,199 by-invite-only Citi ULTIMA.

This begs the question as to whether Visa needs a tier beyond Infinite, or in fact already has one.

The UOB Reserve Card’s T&Cs provide a hint. At point 4.5.8.4, mention is made of a special booking website for golf. Instead of the usual https://promotions.visa.com/campaign/discounted_golf/ that regular Visa Infinite Cardholders use, UOB Reserve Cardholders are directed to https://promotions.visa.com/campaign/UHNW_golf

Notice how the URL mentions UHNW, or Ultra High Net Worth. That’s another type of Visa, which hasn’t officially launched in Singapore. As far as I know, Visa Ultra High Net Worth is only issued in the Middle East to moneyed private banking clients. But could it be that some of the higher-end Visa Infinites in Singapore are actually part of this tier? 

As it turns out, yes! If you look up the BIN (please don’t say BIN number; that’s like saying ATM machine) of the UOB Reserve Card, you’ll notice it’s tagged as “Ultra High Net Worth”. 

In contrast, the DBS Insignia, Citi ULTIMA and OCBC PPC VOYAGE are merely part of the  oh-so-plebeian Infinite tier.

I suppose the question then is whether Visa Ultra High Net Worth offers anything worth shouting about. So far the only thing I’ve been able to find is the golfing benefit, where the availability for golf is much better for UHNW compared to regular Visa Infinite (probably because there’s less competition for slots). 

If anyone knows better, please sound out!

Is the World Elite Mastercard a better bet?

Compared to Visa Infinite, I’d argue that Mastercard’s top tier has more to offer. World Elite Mastercard cardholders can enjoy: 

• Instant GHA DISCOVERY Titanium status
• Instant Wyndham Diamond status
• Held Tables at more than 600 fine dining restaurants worldwide
• Additional travel insurance and purchase protection 
• Complimentary HoteLux membership with 2,000 points
• Mastercard Luxury Hotels & Resorts (similar to Visa’s programme, but with more properties)

There’s also things that aren’t unique to World Elite Mastercards but are still nice to have nonetheless, like the Mastercard One Dines Free programme.

Unfortunately, World Elite Mastercards are few and far between in Singapore. I can think of only four debit or credit cards with this badge:

• Citi Prestige Card
• Citi ULTIMA Card
• OCBC Premier World Elite Debit Card
• UOB Lady’s Solitaire Metal Card (not the regular UOB Lady’s Solitaire)

Of these, two are by invitation only (Citi ULTIMA & UOB Lady’s Solitaire Metal Card), one requires a premier banking relationship (OCBC Premier), and the last one has a S$120,000 income requirement.

So yes, I’d like to have a World Elite Mastercard, but no, I can’t get it easily.

And maybe that’s the point.

Conclusion

Is Visa Infinite at risk of becoming “mass market”, the way no one bats an eyelid at a Platinum card anymore?

From what I understand, Visa does not stipulate minimum income requirements or AUMs for its various tiers. But because the interchange on Visa Infinite Cards is higher (to fund the benefits), it’s a natural decision for banks to limit them to their well-heeled customers.

That said, Standard Chartered did try lowering the minimum income requirement for a Visa Infinite to S$80,000 with the X Card, a failed experiment that was eventually abandoned. Maybe another bank will be bold enough to make a second attempt?

Even if they do, I’m of the opinion that the Visa Infinite core privileges aren’t particularly exciting anymore. Back in the day they offered things like a Harrods Rewards Black Tier membership and a fast-track to Hilton Gold status with just two stays; now it seems like Mastercard is the one with all the fun tie-ups. Of course, this says nothing of the benefits that banks add on, and I think you’ll still find many happy Visa Infinite cardholders out there.

All the same, two decades ago, having a Visa Infinite Card was a big thing. Today, I can’t say the chiobu really care.

Any other Visa Infinite benefits worth mentioning?