Review: Maybank World Mastercard

Here’s The MileLion’s review of the Maybank World Mastercard, which until recently was little more than a curiosity to me.

We always knew this was a good card to use for petrol, given its uncapped 4 mpd earn rate. But that was its only party trick, and how many people spend enough on petrol to justify a dedicated card just for that category? Unless you were running a fleet of vehicles, it made more sense to cover petrol with multi-purpose cards like the UOB Lady’s Card, UOB Preferred Platinum Visa or UOB Visa Signature instead, and avoid the hassle of earning points with yet another bank. 

But the Maybank World Mastercard has been refreshed, and it’s not just for motorheads anymore. It now boasts a best-in-market uncapped 3.2 mpd earn rate for foreign currency (FCY) spending- even on charitable donations, education, hospitals and utilities.

This, together with its bonuses for petrol, non-expiring points and free conversions, makes it a very compelling card to add to your collection.

Maybank World Mastercard
🦁 MileLion Verdict
☑Take It ☐ Take It Or Leave It ☐ Leave It
What do these ratings mean?
With an uncapped 3.2 mpd on FCY spend and 4 mpd on petrol, the Maybank World Mastercard has a lot to offer big spenders- and perhaps even smaller ones too.
👍 The good	👎 The bad
Uncapped 3.2 mpd on FCY spend and 4 mpd on petrol Still earns points on donations, education, hospital bills and utilities Non-expiring points with free conversions	Minimum spend of S$4,000 per month required for 3.2 mpd on FCY (though you’ll still earn 2.8 mpd with a minimum spend of S$800)
💳 Full List of Credit Card Reviews

Overview: Maybank World Mastercard

Let’s start this review by looking at the key features of the Maybank World Mastercard.

Apply Here
Income Req.	S$80,000 p.a.	Points Validity	No expiry
Annual Fee	S$261.60 (FYF)	Min. Transfer	25,000 points (10,000 miles)*
Miles with Annual Fee	N/A	Transfer Partners	4
FCY Fee	3.25%	Transfer Fee	N/A
Local Earn	0.4 mpd	Points Pool?	Yes
FCY Earn	Up to 3.2 mpd	Lounge Access?	No
Special Earn	4 mpd on petrol and selected dining & retail	Airport Limo?	No
Cardholder Terms and Conditions
*For KrisFlyer; 5,000 miles for Cathay and Malaysia Airlines, 2,000 points for Air Asia

How much must I earn to qualify for a Maybank World Mastercard?

The Maybank World Mastercard has a S$80,000 p.a. income requirement, which is a bit of a strange place to be. It’s not quite as exclusive as the S$120,000 mass affluent segment, nor is it as accessible as the S$30,000 entry-level segment.

In fact, the income requirement is a throwback to 5-10 years ago, where miles cards like the DBS Altitude, Citi PremierMiles and UOB PRVI Miles all had S$80,000 income requirements, presumably to give them an air of prestige (even though any requirement above S$30,000 is essentially arbitrary).

That said, my understanding is that Maybank is not strict at all with this requirement, and it’s not difficult to get approved even if you don’t meet the threshold.

How much is the Maybank World Mastercard’s annual fee? 

The Maybank World Mastercard has an annual fee of S$261.60, which is waived for the first year.

Subsequent years’ fees can be waived with a minimum spend of S$24,000 in a membership year. It does appear that Maybank is not strictly enforcing this this rule, however, as there are data points from customers who have received waivers despite not meeting this threshold.

All supplementary cards are free for life.

What welcome offers are available?

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Maybank is currently offering a welcome gift of either a Samsonite ENOW SPINNER 69/25 (worth S$570) or S$200 cashback for new-to-bank customers who apply for a Maybank credit card and spend at least S$1,300 within the first two months of approval. 

New-to-bank customers are defined as those who:

• Do not currently hold a principal Maybank credit card or CreditAble account
• Have not cancelled a principal Maybank credit card or CreditAble account in the past 9 months

The T&Cs of this offer can be found here.

In my experience, Maybank is extremely fast with the gift fulfilment, and I received mine within days of meeting the minimum spend. 

How many miles do I earn?

SGD/FCY Spend

Maybank World Mastercard cardholders earn miles according to the table below.

The local earn rate is fixed at 0.4 mpd, with exceptions for certain special categories mentioned like petrol (see below).

The overseas earn rate starts at 0.4 mpd, but cardholders who spend at least S$800 per calendar month earn 2.8 mpd, and cardholders who spend at least S$4,000 per calendar month earn 3.2 mpd. The minimum spend comprises all retail transactions charged to the card, whether in SGD or FCY.

The upsized earn rates apply from the very first S$1 of spend, and not just the incremental spending. For example:

• A cardholder who spends S$1,000 in FCY would earn 2,800 miles (S$1,000 @2.8 mpd)
• A cardholder who spends S$5,000 in FCY would earn 16,000 miles (S$5,000 @ 3.2 mpd)

While you will need to spend at least S$800/S$4,000 per calendar month to unlock the 2.8 mpd/3.2 mpd rates, there is no cap on the maximum miles you can earn. And if the uncapped feature is what attracts you to this card, then it’s safe to say the minimum spend won’t be an issue.

While the Maybank Visa Infinite and Maybank Horizon Visa Signature have offered an uncapped 3.2 mpd on FCY spend on a promotional basis, the Maybank World Mastercard offers this as a permanent feature. 

This makes it one of the best FCY general spending cards on the market, as shown in the table below. Even if you can’t meet the minimum S$4,000 spend for 3.2 mpd, a 2.8 mpd is still better than most other general spending cards.

💳 FCY Earn Rates by Card (For general spending cards with uncapped earn rates only)
Card	Earn Rate	Remarks
Maybank World Mastercard Apply	3.2 mpd	Min. S$4K spend per c. month
	2.8 mpd	Min. S$800 spend per c. month
StanChart Visa Infinite Apply	3 mpd	Min. S$2K spend per s. month Review
Maybank Horizon Apply	2.8 mpd	Min. S$800 spend per c. month Review
UOB PRVI Miles Apply	2.4 mpd	Review
HSBC TravelOne Card Apply	2.4 mpd	Review
OCBC VOYAGE (Premier, PPC, BOS) Apply	2.3 mpd	Review
OCBC Premier Visa Infinite Apply	2.24 mpd
Citi Premier Miles Card Apply	2.2 mpd	Review
DBS Vantage Apply	2.2 mpd	Review
OCBC VOYAGE Apply	2.2 mpd	Review
OCBC 90°N Card Apply	2.1 mpd	Review
All other options earn 2 mpd or less

I should point out at this juncture that you can earn 4 mpd on FCY spending with the UOB Visa Signature, as well as other specialised spending cards. However, these earn rates will be capped, or only apply to specific MCCs. Read the article below for more information.

2024 Edition: Best Cards for Overseas Spending

The Maybank World Mastercard has an FCY fee of 3.25%, so using it overseas represents buying miles at around 1.02 cents (3.2 mpd) or 1.16 cents (2.8 mpd) each, which is very decent in my book.

Bonus spend

The Maybank World Mastercard earns an uncapped 4 mpd on the following MCCs and specific merchants. 

The 4 mpd will only be awarded for offline transactions made in Singapore. In other words, you wouldn’t earn these bonuses for shopping on the websites of the abovementioned boutiques or, in the case of petrol, paying through apps like Kris+ (available at Esso) or CaltexGo.

Maybank World Mastercard cardholders can apply for a free Corporate Fuel Card, which gives a 15% upfront discount at Shell, on top of credit card rewards. Despite the name, there’s no need to be a registered business entity to use it; it’s equally available to individuals. 

When are TREATS Points credited?

For FCY spend, base TREATS Points are credited when the transaction posts, which usually takes 1-3 working days. Bonus TREATS Points are credited the following month.

For petrol and specialised retail/dining, base and bonus TREATS Points are credited when the transaction posts.

How are TREATS Points calculated?

Here’s how you can work out the TREATS Points earned on your Maybank World Mastercard.

For FCY spend

Spend <S$800 per calendar month

Spend S$800 to S$3,999 per calendar month

Spend ≥S$4,000 per calendar month

For petrol and speciality dining & retail

Maybank cards do have minimum earn blocks of S$5, which means a S$9.99 transaction earns the same amount of points as a S$5 transaction, and a <S$5 transaction earns no points at all.

The impact will be more acute on petrol and specialised dining & retail, since base and bonus points are awarded on a transaction level. It’s relatively more muted for FCY spending, because all eligible transactions are summed up to compute the bonus points, without rounding. 

If you’re an Excel geek, here’s the formulas you need to calculate points: 

For FCY spend

Spend <S$800 per calendar month

Spend S$800 to S$3,999 per calendar month

Spend ≥S$4,000 per calendar month

For petrol and speciality dining & retail

For the full list of formulas that banks use to calculate credit card points, do refer to these articles:

• General Spending Cards
• Specialised Spending Cards

What transactions aren’t eligible for TREATS Points?

A full list of transactions that do not earn points can be found in the T&Cs at point 2.2.

I’ve highlighted a few noteworthy categories below:

• Betting and gambling transactions
• Brokerage and securities transactions
• Government services 
• Insurance premiums
• Prepaid account top-ups, e.g. GrabPay and YouTrip

It’s a refreshingly brief list actually, and for avoidance of doubt, you will earn points on commonly-excluded transactions, such as charitable donations, education, hospitals and utilities.

Those will earn just 0.4 mpd if charged in SGD, but go overseas and the whole picture changes. You could be earning as much as 3.2 mpd on transactions like university fees or medical treatments, miles you couldn’t have otherwise earned with other cards.

What do I need to know about TREATS Points?

Expiry

While TREATS Points normally expire after one year, Maybank World Mastercard cardholders are automatically enrolled into the Rewards Infinite programme. This means their TREATS Points never expire.

Pooling

TREATS Points pool with other Maybank cards. If you have 20,000 TREATS Points on the Maybank World Mastercard, and 5,000 TREATS Points on the Maybank Horizon Visa Signature, you can redeem 25,000 TREATS Points at one go.

This also means that if you cancel your Maybank World Mastercard Card, you won’t lose your accumulated TREATS Points unless it happens to be your very last TREATS-earning card.

Transfer Partners & Fees

TREATS Points can be transferred to four airline partners at the following ratios.

Frequent Flyer Programme	Conversion Ratio (TREATS Points: Partner)
	25,000 : 10,000*
	12,500 : 5,000
	12,500 : 5,000
	4,000 : 2,000
*You must convert KrisFlyer miles via the TREATS SG app (Android | iOS) to enjoy this rate. Manual conversion receive an inferior rate of 30,000 points = 10,000 miles

Malaysia Airlines Enrich and airasia rewards are close to worthless in my opinion, so that leaves Asia Miles and KrisFlyer as the only realistic options.

Conversion fees are waived for Maybank World Mastercard cardholders, and since TREATS Points pool, you can use the Maybank World Mastercard as a conduit to convert TREATS Points earned on other Maybank cards for free.

Transfer Time

Conversions to KrisFlyer miles are generally completed within 1-3 working days.

Other card perks

Golf benefits

The Maybank Regional Golf programme offers principal Maybank World Mastercard cardholders complimentary green fees at more than 100 participating golf clubs across 19 countries.

Cardholders must spend at least S$2,000 in the previous calendar month to enjoy this benefit, and can book a maximum of two flights per month per cardholder. In Singapore, the participating clubs are:

• Sembawang Country Club
• Warren Golf & Country Club
• Orchid Country Club
• 2 additional “premium golf clubs” (not named)

Golf perks offered by other credit cards normally require a paying guest, but no such requirement exists for Maybank World Mastercard cardholders who book clubs in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. 

The T&Cs of the Maybank Regional Golf programme can be found here.

Complimentary travel insurance

Maybank World Mastercard cardholders receive complimentary travel insurance when they charge their full travel fares to their card. Unfortunately, coverage will not apply in situations where you redeem miles for an award ticket, and charge the taxes and fees to your Maybank World Mastercard.

This features up to S$1,000,000 coverage for accidental death or total permanent disablement, S$400 for luggage delays or missed connections, and S$1,000 for luggage loss.

However, there is no coverage for medical expenses or emergency medical evacuation. Because of this, I highly advise that you purchase comprehensive travel insurance elsewhere.

Terms & Conditions

• Maybank World Mastercard T&Cs
• TREATS Rewards Programme

Summary Review: Maybank World Mastercard

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If you find yourself constantly busting the caps of specialised spending cards, you’re going to love the Maybank World Mastercard. 

An uncapped 4 mpd on petrol is sweet in itself, but an uncapped 3.2 mpd on any FCY spend, even charitable donations, education, hospitals and utilities is potentially game-changing. Factor in the free conversions and non-expiring points, and there’s a very compelling value proposition to consider. 

And even if you don’t spend as much, you can still earn a very good uncapped 2.8 mpd on any FCY spend, with a minimum spend of just S$800. The 4 mpd on petrol has no minimum spend requirement, and you’ll still enjoy the other perks like free conversions and non-expiring points. 

So that’s my review of the Maybank World Mastercard. What do you think?