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Citibank introduces more payment categories for PayAll

Published by Shane

Now you can also ‘buy’ miles at 1.5 to 2 cents per mile for payments for taxes, condo management fees and utility bills

The PayAll service has been an excellent solution in plugging the gap in the miles game and now it has gotten even better with the introduction of more categories.

Remember, PayAll can only be accessed through the Citibank mobile app, so be sure to download the app first (from Apple Store or Google Play Store).

New categories

When PayAll was first introduced earlier this year, Citibank only limited the payments to education and rent payments, although I’m still skeptical as to how they would enforce it.

In this recent development, Citibank has now expanded the list of payments to include tax payments to IRAS, condo management fees and electricity bills.

Unlike the first rollout of payments for rent and education, there is a fixed list of payees this time round. You will need to specify the MCST that you are paying to, for instance.

Recap: Cost per mile

Here’s the cost per mile analysis for PayAll, depending on whether you are targeted with 1.5% or 2.0% fee, based on the card you use.

Card	Earn rate (mpd)	Cost per mile
Card	Earn rate (mpd)	1.5% fee	2.0% fee
Citi Ultima	1.6	0.94¢	1.25¢
Citi Prestige	1.3	1.15¢	1.53¢
Citi PremierMiles Amex	1.3	1.15¢	1.53¢
Citi PremierMiles Visa	1.2	1.25¢	1.67¢
Citi Rewards	0.4	3.75¢	5.00¢

Of course, don’t ever do anything as silly as to use your Citi Rewards card for any PayAll transactions, you are better off buying miles directly from airlines if you do that!

Final thoughts

This is definitely a move in a good direction and I’m hoping that Citibank will continue to expand on its list of payees. In my ideal world, it should be all encompassing and one day, perhaps to include prepaid cards as well.

The additions are timely as well, for instance, the ability to pay off your taxes through this method is well timed in view of the tax season. If your tax bill is high (lucky you) and you are not adverse to buying miles, this is definitely a good way to earn more miles for your travels.

Mileslife suspends operations in Singapore

Published by Shane

Announcement made last night through the Mileslife app, although not unexpected.

Mileslife last night put out a sudden announcement that it was suspending operations in Singapore:

‘Suspended temporarily’

While Mileslife did say it’s a ‘temporary’ suspension and said they are hoping to return by July, it remains to be seen if they can even successfully return to the market.

If you have been following their development closely, you will have come across many signs of issues brewing with Mileslife since several months ago.

It started with this case of a merchant in China complaining about the non-payment of dues owed, and following that, a spate of ‘temporary suspension’ of partnerships by several airlines including Singapore Airlines and British Airways.

There were also reports of Mileslife merchants who had verbally told customers that they were not accepting Mileslife payments anymore, including Crystal Jade group of restaurants.

It’s worthwhile to note that while Mileslife has suspended operations in Singapore, from online reports it seems like they are still working well in Hong Kong and China, although the partner airline offering has reduced significantly.

What happens if you still have Mileslife credits?

Tough luck. When the turbulence started hitting a few weeks ago, some forum users did go down the refund route. Mileslife offers a refund less 15% administrative fee, which is probably the best way to cut losses.

If you still have some credits, it might be worthwhile writing in to their customer care at customercare.sg@mileslife.com.

Will Mileslife ever come back?

Much as Mileslife hope to come back in July after a ‘operational restructure’.

Given the recent dive in public confidence from merchants, airline partners and users, it will be immensely difficult for them to bounce back and regain the former glory, short of a new brand. Even then, I believe that users will be a lot more cautious in parting with their money through this app.

Final thoughts

Mileslife definitely changed the landscape for earning frequent flyer miles. Traditionally, one could only earn miles from actually flying, and then subsequently credit cards came on board to award miles for spend.

Mileslife took the concept a step further, by partnering with merchants and awarding miles through everyday spend. And the earn rates were crazy: under some promotions, users could get as much as 12 mpd on select merchants.

Apart from earning miles through dining and lifestyle spend, you could also earn miles by simply checking in on the app everyday, and also walk your way to more miles by clocking steps every day (this functionality was only available in Singapore).

As with all start ups, cashflow is often a problem. Conversations with merchants revealed that while customers were paying full price through the app, merchants were actually paid a discounted price, with Mileslife pocketing the difference. My guess is that this is the default revenue model for Mileslife, while most of the expenses also go to funding miles awarded to users. Airlines are known to charge non-airline partners for the miles they disburse, which will cost anything from 0.8 cents to the market rate of 4 cents per mile.

As with many things, nothing comes free and in this case, Mileslife users probably had the last laugh all the way to their first class seat.

LOUNGE REVIEW: Ryurin Lounge, Naha International Airport, Okinawa

Published by Shane

On my way home to Singapore from Okinawa with Cathay Pacific today, I had the chance to check out the Ryurin Lounge at the airport. One good perk of having Marco Polo Club status – even just with Silver – is that you will get access to a lounge as long as you are flying with Cathay Pacific or Cathay Dragon.

*Ryurin Lounge, Naha Internatonal Airport*

Naha International Airport is largely a domestic airport with a small international terminal. The last time I was here, the international check-in area was a tiny two-row space, but it has since been moved to a larger hall on the third floor of the terminal to accommodate the growth in international air traffic.

Despite the number of international flights coming into Okinawa, there is still only one lounge: the Ryurin Lounge which effectively serves all airlines and their premium customers.

*Ryurin Lounge is only accessible by airline customers*

At the time of writing, the lounge serves customers of the following airlines:

China Airlines
Hong Kong Airlines
Asiana Airlines
Cathay Pacific / Cathay Dragon
Air China
Korean Air
EVA Air
China Eastern

The lounge, facilities and location

Ryurin Lounge at Okinawa international terminal is located on the 4th floor, after immigration and security screening. To access the lounge, there is a lift right across from gate 42 that will bring you to the doorstep of the lounge. Note that there’s no stairs to the lounge, this is the only way to get into the lounge.

When you first enter the lounge, the staff will check your boarding pass and your lounge invitation, before you head into the lounge itself. Also, there’s a coat rack at the front desk area, and the receptionist will ask if you need to check your coat.

The lounge is a tiny space: a total of 37 seats are available, including two at the front door, as well 2 each at the telephone booth and workstations. The tiny size is because the lounge largely one flight at any one time, and this lounge is not available to any lounge programmes such as Priority Pass, and it’s also not available on a pay-per-use basis.

As with all places Japanese, customers are reminded not to use their mobile phones in the lounge. For those who need to chat, there are two dedicated booths for you to chat at.

There’s also two small desks for those who need to catch up with work on their own laptops or tablets.

*Work desks if you need to catch up on work*

Within the lounge there’s also a smoking room. Now, this is a very Japanese concept, as most other airports will require you to leave the lounge and head to the public smoking area if you wish to light up.

Given that Okinawa has no long-haul destinations, this lounge has no shower facilities. There are however a pair of toilets for customers to use.

Food and beverage

Given that it’s a small lounge, there’s also very limited food and beverage offerings.

For a start, there are no hot food available: there are only pre-packed snacks and cold jelly available for you to munch on. If you need something hot, they do have cup noodles available. I thought it was pretty thoughtful to have them in the mini size, so that you can have a small bite if you are feeling peckish rather than needing something fuller.

*Cold snacks and cup noodles if you need a bite*

They are better equipped in the beverage department. For non-alcoholic drinks, there are two dispensers: one for soft drinks, and another one for hot drinks.

There’s also a range of complimentary alcoholic beverages, including red and white wine, as well as Japanese spirits such as native Okinawan awamori, Japanese whiskey and plum wine or umeshu. My favourite of all has got to be the self-dispensing beer tap dishing out Orion draft beer.

*Complimentary Japanese spirits and wines*

Final thoughts

There is no doubt the Ryurin Lounge is a very small lounge, probably one of the smallest I’ve seen. In the quintessentially Japanese spirit, this small space is adequately equipped as a lounge space for an international airport serving short and mid-haul destinations, with its furthest international flight being Singapore, which is about 5 hours away.

One sore lack was the absence of hot food. While the flight length doesn’t warrant one, premium travellers may appreciate the offering. In the beverage department, however, they are fully equipped, offering some of the best that Japan and Okinawa can offer.

What else is good is that the lounge is not open to pay-per-use customers, or even third-party lounge programmes such as Priority Pass and Dragon Pass, so at no time does the lounge feel overcrowded. Having said that, the international terminal has only this lounge, so if you do not have lounge access as part of your fare, it’s better that you spend time in the public area and clear immigration and security only at the last minute.

Location and operating details

Location: Okinawa Naha International Airport, after immigration and security, opposite Gate 42
Access: Only for passengers who has lounge access as part of their fare or frequent flyer entitlements, not available for Priority Pass or Dragon Pass
Hours: 0845H to 2120H (hours may vary)
Food and beverage: Yes, complimentary
Alcohol: Yes, complimentary
Toilets: Yes
Showers: No
Business Centre: No

Earn up to 20,000 bonus Asia Miles on trips between US and Southeast Asia

Published by Shane

Offer only open to residents of Southeast Asia. Register and fly from now to 31 July 2019.

Cathay Pacific is currently running an Asia Miles promotion, offering up to 20,000 bonus Asia Miles for trips between Southeast Asia and USA.

The promotion

Current Asia Miles members will earn between 5,000 and 10,000 each way between Southeast Asia and select destinations in US.

You will receive 5,000 Asia Miles each way for economy class, 8,000 Asia Miles each way for premium economy and 10,000 Asia Miles each way for business class. There is unfortunately no bonus for first class (then again, if you can afford to buy a first class ticket, you really shouldn’t be worrying about bonus miles).

To receive the bonus miles, you must register for the promotion here, before you begin your trip. Registration of the promotion and the entire trip have to be completed before 31 July 2019. The bonus miles will be credited 6 to 8 weeks after your trip, although in reality Asia Miles usually comes in pretty quickly.

The fine print

This offer is only valid for Asia Miles members who resides in Southeast Asia, i.e. Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Residency is determined by the member’s preferred mailing address as registered with Asia Miles.

The offer is only valid for flights marketed and operated by Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon (i.e. has a CX or KA flight number, and is operated by Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon) the entire journey. If any part of your journey involves a codeshare flight, tough luck.

All miles-earning fare classes across business, premium economy and economy are eligible for this offer. Yay.

The class of travel for the bonus miles will be determined by the sector between Hong Kong and US. So if you are travelling in business from Southeast Asia to Hong Kong, and then premium economy to US, you will receive 8,000 bonus Asia Miles as opposed to 10,000.

One-way journeys and mixed class travel are allowed for this promotion. and the bonus will be awarded on a per-way basis.

So are the bonus miles worth it?

For the purpose of comparison, here are some of the usual mileage of trips to US from Southeast Asia:

One-way mileage from:
Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City)

Destination	Cabin	Fare Class	Asia Miles earned	Bonus miles	Increase
Los Angeles San Francisco Seattle	Economy	Q/N/S	4,330	5,000	115%
		V/L/M	7,790	5,000	64%
		K/H/B/Y	8,650	5,000	58%
	Premium Economy	E	8,650	8,000	92%
	Premium Economy	R/W	9,950	8,000	80%
	Business	I/D	10,810	10,000	93%
	Business	C/J	11,680	10,000	86%
Chicago Boston New York (JFK) Washington DC (IAD)	Economy	Q/N/S	5,350	5,000	93%
		V/L/M	9,630	5,000	52%
		K/H/B/Y	10,700	5,000	47%
	Premium Economy	E	10,700	8,000	75%
	Premium Economy	R/W	12,310	8,000	65%
	Business	I/D	13,380	10,000	75%
	Business	C/J	14,450	10,000	69%

One-way mileage from: Philippines, Vietnam (Hanoi)

Destination	Cabin	Fare Class	Asia Miles earned	Bonus miles	Increase
Los Angeles San Francisco Seattle	Economy	Q/N/S	3,660	5,000	137%
		V/L/M	6,580	5,000	76%
		K/H/B/Y	7,300	5,000	68%
	Premium Economy	E	7,300	8,000	110%
	Premium Economy	R/W	8,400	8,000	95%
	Business	I/D	9,120	10,000	110%
	Business	C/J	9,860	10,000	101%
Chicago Boston New York (JFK) Washington DC (IAD)	Economy	Q/N/S	4,680	5,000	107%
	V/L/M	8,420	5,000	59%
	K/H/B/Y	9,350	5,000	53%
	Premium Economy	E	9,350	8,000	86%
	Premium Economy	R/W	8,400	8,000	95%
	Business	I/D	11,690	10,000	86%
	Business	C/J	12,630	10,000	79%

So as you can see from above, the best bonus comes either when you are flying the cheapest economy fares, and if you are flying to the west coast of US (i.e. Seattle, San Francisco or Los Angeles).

For a return trip from Singapore to Los Angeles for a week in June, you will be paying S$1,584 roundtrip, and that will earn you 18,660 Asia Miles including the bonus miles, enough for a one-way premium economy award ticket from Singapore to Hong Kong or Taipei.

Singapore to Los Angeles round trip fare

If you are based in Hanoi or the Philippines, you will get the best deals, with almost 100% or more bonus miles if you are booked in the cheapest economy fares, or in the premium cabins.

A sample search out of Manila to San Francisco priced the ticket at about USD825, which is a steal for 17,320 miles.

And of course, if you are a Marco Polo Club member, you will also continue to earn club points on these trips. If you are at least a Silver member, you will also enjoy lounge access each time you travel with Cathay Pacific or Cathay Dragon, even if you are travelling in economy or premium economy.

Don’t forget to register for the promotion before you travel. Register
here.

A look at the UOB Krisflyer Credit Card – is it any good?

Published by Shane

After launching the UOB Krisflyer account with some flak and tweaks down the road, UOB has most recently launched yet another co-brand card: the UOB Krisflyer credit card.

Now, UOB is only the second financial institution to launch a Krisflyer-branded card, after American Express.

The short list

Income requirement: S$30,000 p.a. for Singaporeans, S$40,000 p.a. for foreigners.
Annual fee: S$192.60, waived for first year
Renewal gift: 10,000 miles when annual fee is paid

Sign up bonus

The sign-up bonus is essentially in two tiers, one for all customers who apply for the card, and one for new-to-UOB customers.

For all applicants, if your card application is approved by 30 June 2019, you will receive 5,000 bonus Krisflyer miles if you spend at least $5 within the first 60 days of getting your card.

For this bonus, you will first receive 3,000 miles in your Krisflyer account within the next month after the first spend, while the remaining 2,000 miles will be posted by 31 October 2019.

If you are new to UOB (i.e. this is your first UOB credit card), you will get an additional 7,000 Krisflyer miles, or a return ticket to Bangkok, Lombok or Penang if you spend at least S$2,000 in the first 60 days of getting your card. This is on top of the 5,000 miles for all. Note that you will need to register for this promotion via SMS.

The earn rates

UOB has advertised the following earn rates:

3 Krisflyer miles per dollar spent (mpd) on Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, Scoot and KrisShop purchases
Up to 3 mpd on everyday spend, with a minimum of S$500 annual spend on Singapore Airlines Group purchases
1.2 mpd on all other general spending

Well, UOB also mentions that if you have a KrisFlyer UOB account, you can earn up to 5 mpd, or 6 mpd if you credit your salary. I’m not going to go into the details, but Milelion has a very good explanation on why this is crappy.

Other perks

Of course, given that this is a co-brand card, there are no transfer fees involved to convert your UOB points to Krisflyer miles.

You will receive KrisFlyer Elite Silver status when you spend a minimum of S$5,000 on Singapore Airlines Group.

There’s also the twice-a-year $15 credit that you can use for Grab rides, as well as a twice-a-year $15 credit for wifi routers you rent from Changi Recommends.

Scoot privileges

If you book Scoot tickets through the dedicated link, you and your travelling party will receive the following perks:

Priority check-in and boarding with Scoot
Additional 5kg check-in baggage allowance, if you have purchased any check-in bags
Standard seat selection for you only
S$10 booking fee waiver for you only
One-time change waiver

This may be a good deal if you travel frequently on Scoot, either for leisure or (sadly) for work.

The fine print

Now for the headline that appears on about every other article published so far: you will get the bonus miles only a year later. Specifically, for the 3 miles per dollar spent on everyday spend, you will first receive base 1.2 mpd in your monthly statement. The remaining 1.8 mpd will only be awarded two months after your card anniversary, if you fulfill the minimum S$500 spend on Singapore Airlines Group.

No way to earn your bonus miles faster. In the terms and conditions, it is also explicitly stated that “Expedite of fulfillment of Award is not allowed”. If you cancel your card within the first year, tough luck — you forfeit all bonus miles.

UOB takes a broad definition of ‘everyday spend’. Everyday spend include dining (eating places, restaurants, bars and fast food restaurants), online food delivery (GrabFood, foodpanda, honestbee), online shopping, online travel and all transport cards.

All miles will be automatically credited at the end of each month to the nominated Krisflyer account. There is no conversion fee, yippee!

As with all other UOB cards, miles are earn in blocks of S$5 spend. You get the same number of miles whether you spend $5.20 or $9.80. And if you spend $4.80 in a single transaction, you don’t get a single mile.

Now the assessment

3 mpd on everyday spend is not the highest in the market, but it definitely is an attractive alternative for those who are lazy to carry multiple cards or be scrutinous on what cards to use for which transaction types.

UOB has also fortunately taken a very broad approach to the categories of merchants for each spending type, hence you do not need to worry about whether a particular you will get the full 3 mpd. For instance, under ‘dining’, bars and cafes are all included, on top of restaurants.

Some of the fringe perks, including the $15 Grab credits and $15 Changi Recommends credits for wifi routers are pretty decent.

The airline perks on the other hand is rather… lame.

First, Krisflyer Elite Silver Fast Track: if you have to spend $5,000 to get Silver, this is really nothing to be excited about. You will get 25% bonus miles, priority waitlist and standby, and some discounted service fees. Honestly, if you are like me and end up buying the cheapest economy class fare all the time which attracts 50% of mileage flown, 25% of 50% is just an additional 12.5% miles. That’s it. And also, there’s no lounge access for silver, not even a one-use pass.

$20 KrisShop rebate: I don’t get why you can only use this once a year.

$10 convenience fee waiver for Scoot bookings: While this seems pretty good, but note that they only waive it for the cardholder (i.e. you) when making a group booking. Factor in the fact that Scoot charges a $20 credit card fee (as opposed to $5 fee for AXS payments), you are effectively pay for any miles you get out of using your UOB Krisflyer card.

Final thoughts

It seems like Singapore Airlines is reserving the best perks for itself, and instead provided its partners with a range of ‘cheap perks’ in the form of Scoot privileges and discounts.

Also remember: in order to accrue miles on Krisflyer, you will also need to purchase the Perks Plus bundle so the costs eventually adds up.

What disturbs me the most is the fact that you have to wait an entire year to get your bonus miles on top of the base 1.2 mpd. I know this is probably so that UOB can calculate how much you did spend on SIA Group in order to qualify for the bonus, but this is pretty easy to overcome by requiring cardholders to spend the minimum upfront to unlock the higher earn rates.

All in all, when you look at the kind of perks they offer (i.e. mostly on Scoot) as well as some of the other perks, such as Grab vouchers in lieu of limo services, it’s very clear that this is targeted at a low- to mid-budget travellers, rather than high travel spenders.

I think there is an opportunity for UOB to launch a premium travel card to hit a segment that it has routinely missed, and given its relationship with Singapore Airlines, this might just be its perfect opportunity.