All posts tagged: DBS

DBS raises foreign currency transaction fee to 3.25%

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From 1 November 2019, DBS will have one of the highest fees for foreign transactions for its Visa and Mastercard credit cards. DBS will be raising its foreign currency transaction fee on all DBS & POSB Visa and Mastercard credit cards from the existing 3% to 3.25% from 1 November 2019. The notice did not mention anything about Amex cards, so it should be staying at 3% for now. What are foreign currency transaction fees? When you use your credit card overseas, there are typically two fees involved that is added to the converted amount: The card network fee (charged by Visa, Mastercard or Amex) The bank transaction fee These fees are incurred for processing the transaction, converting them into the billing currency (Singapore dollars for those using Singapore credit cards, etc). The prevailing rates charged by the card networks are as follow: Visa & Mastercard – 1% American Express – 1 to 1.25%, depending on bank Different banks have different transaction fees, which will bring the total up to anything between 2.75% to 3.25%. …

Transfer your DBS points to Qantas Frequent Flyer and get 25% more

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Qantas is now running a points transfer promotion, offering a 25% bonus on top of the usual transfer rates. So that means, for every 5000 DBS points transferred, you will get 12,500 Qantas points instead of the usual 10,000. The baseline number of points will usually show up within a couple of days (DBS says it will take up to 7 working days, but in reality it’s usually quite fast), and you will receive the bonus points by 14 November 2019. Qantas first partnered up with DBS earlier this year in March 2019, and offered a launch offer of 20% bonus. Back then, I transferred 30,000 points to Qantas, and the bonus showed up that very weekend. Should you transfer your points to Qantas? If you are familiar with the Qantas Frequent Flyer programme, you will know that the points are generally worth less than an equivalent mile on other programmes such as Krisflyer and Asia Miles, so transfer bank points to Qantas points is usually not a worthy endeavour. Even with a 25% bonus, …

Get 20% more Qantas Points when you transfer your DBS points

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There is no cap on the number of bonus points you can get as long as you transfer before 30 June 2019. DBS has introduced Qantas Frequent Flyer as a partner not too long ago, and now they are offering a promotion, offering an additional 20% bonus points for all conversions made from now until 30 June 2019. DBS points need to be converted in blocks of 5,000 points for 10,000 Qantas points, with no cap on how many points you can transfer in each transaction. Note that the conversion fee of $26.75 will apply for each transfer. The 20% bonus points will be credited on the 14th of each subsequent month. For instance: Good redemption rates for Australia, Emirates With Singapore Airlines devaluing their miles earlier this year, Qantas Frequent Flyer is now competitive in the redemption rates. For instance, it will cost you 60,000 Qantas points for a one-way business class ticket to Sydney, as compared to Singapore Airlines’ 62,000 miles. At the time of writing, there is also no easy way to …

You can now redeem Qantas Frequent Flyer points with your DBS points

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DBS has quietly added Qantas as a frequent flyer redemption partner last week, making it only the fourth partner one can transfer DBS points to. The exchange rate is 1 DBS point to 2 Qantas points, at a rate similar to Krisflyer miles and Asia Miles. Redemption has to be made in blocks of 5,000 DBS points to 10,000 Qantas points. Each transfer will incur an administrative cost of $26.75. What can I use my Qantas Points for? Apart for redeeming for Qantas flights, you can also use Qantas points for oneworld partner flights. You can also use your Qantas points for Jetstar flights (PSA: don’t do it) and more importantly, for Emirates flights. Comparable rates to Krisflyer miles for redemptions For a while now, Qantas has been known to have very generous earn rates, but terrible redemption rates and availability when compared to competitors flying on the same route, or even across oneworld frequent flyer programmes. Ever since Singapore Airlines has devalued its Krisflyer programme (once in 2017, and a second time in 2019), …