QIB-Qatar Airways VISA Signature credit card raises bar on premium services

Source: QIB.

Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) has launched a Premium QIB-Qatar Airways VISA Signature credit card that enhances the QIB and Qatar Airways range of co-branded cards with a new range of benefits.

Designed with premium customers in mind, the QIB-Qatar Airways Signature credit card offers global concierge services, global airport lounge access, discounts and offers on luxury hotels, and full multi-trip travel insurance.

The VISA Signature co-branded card will enable customers to earn one Qmile for every QR6 spent on purchases made at a point of sale by either the customer or their supplementary card member. These Qmiles can be then used for redemptions including complimentary flights, upgrades and excess baggage on Qatar Airways’ flights, together with purchases made at Qatar Duty Free located at Hamad International Airport in Doha or the Oryx Galleria boutique in Doha, Qatar. Qmiles can also be redeemed for complimentary flights with oneworld airline partners.

The card will also provide multilingual concierge services with a 24-hour personal assistant who can arrange dinner reservations, chauffeur and taxi services, tickets, gifts or anything required in order to enhance the travel experience. The ‘LoungeKey’ Service, on both primary and supplementary cards, offers unlimited complimentary access to over 500 airport lounges worldwide.

All card holders will enjoy discounts on hotel rates, car rentals, exclusive restaurants, jewellery stores, theme parks, educational centres, holiday packages and a wide range of leading outlets around the world, including with the over 900 hotels listed in the Visa Luxury Hotel Collection.

The QIB-Qatar Airways Visa Signature Credit Card also enjoys automatic purchase protection covering all purchases made with the card. The protection includes loss, theft or damage of purchased items. Card holders will enjoy multi-trip travel insurance for themselves and their families, covering personal accidents, medical and travel inconvenience benefits. The card also comes with peace of mind on purchased items by almost doubling the manufacturer’s or retailer’s warranty on all items bought using the VISA Signature card. In addition, customers can withdraw cash of up to 100% of their credit limit as well as having the benefit of higher transaction limits.

As with all of QIB's credit and debit cards, online security is a major concern of the Bank. To counteract the risk of fraud, QIB has, over the past year, introduced a number of measures such as the use of one time passwords (OTP) that are valid for only one log-in or transaction; a move away from using the magnetic strip on the reverse side of the cards, in favour of chip-based processing; and the use of '3D Secure Technology', which has a password-protected authentication system designed to confirm the identity of the cardholder when a Visa Card is used online.

D. Anand, General Manager of the Personal Banking Group, pointed out that the launch of the VISA Signature Card specifically targets premium frequent travellers who can enjoy all travel benefits the Card has to offer, and will get to be part of Qatar Airways Loyalty Programme – Privilege Club. 

“We have witnessed that our customers’ spending habits require different payment solutions and this shari’ah compliant credit card offers a range of special privileges together with modern day convenience. Aimed at our affluent customers, we are proud to introduce the Visa Signature Co-branded credit card category, providing our clients with unique products and services, aiming as always to surpass their expectations,” he said.

“Further, the introduction of a new tier of QIB–Qatar Airways co-branded cards is a great testament to our successful partnership with one of the world’s five-star airlines.”`

ADIB's Etihad Islamic cards get wallet function

Source: Etihad Guest website.

Etihad Airways’ loyalty programme, Etihad Guest, has added the walletplus, powered by Visa payment feature onto its Etihad Guest card. Etihad Guest members will be able to load travel money onto their cards and convert it into 11 different foreign currencies to spend abroad.

The membership card can be loaded in advance, enabling card holders to better manage their travel budgets by locking in competitive exchange rates in real time before they travel. Pre-loading the card also means that members are immediately able to spend in the local currency upon arrival in another country, without having to first exchange or transfer funds at a bank or foreign exchange.

A maximum of 11 currencies can be held on the card at any one time, one of which must be UAE dirhams. The 10 other currencies are: US dollar, pound Sterling, Euro, Indian rupee, Australian dollar, Canadian dollar, Singapore dollar, Hong Kong dollar, Japanese yen and Thai baht.

Yasser Al Yousuf, Managing Director, Etihad Guest said: “The Etihad Guest loyalty programme focusses on providing features and benefits that enhance value to its members. The new Etihad Guest Card with walletplus is innovative in that it combines the functionality of a reloadable payment card with the benefits of Etihad Guest membership in a single piece of plastic, a first in loyalty and travel payments in the Middle East.”

Additionally, Etihad Guest members can download the walletplus mobile application, available for iOS and Android users, to access a range of functions that include checking their account balance and transaction history, transfer money to other Etihad Guest members with an activated walletplus account (AED only), and report a card lost/stolen.

Philip King, UAE Head of Retail, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), said: “This is a highly innovative product and the first of its kind in the region. ADIB is proud to assist Etihad Airways in developing a multi-functional card which vividly demonstrates ADIB’s ground-breaking product development capabilities.

Etihad Guest also partnered with Rêv Worldwide, a global leader in multi-currency prepaid processing, to develop the product, utilising Rêv’s proprietary prepaid multi-currency processing platform and global experience in pioneering similar successful products.

“Well before starting work on this new product, we knew we were dealing with a partner that focuses on delivering excellent value and first class service to its members,” said John Mitchell, Chief Executive Officer, Rêv Worldwide, adding “we have great alignment on the value that innovation provides to further customer engagement.”

Etihad Guest members can earn one Etihad Guest Mile per US$2 spent in the UAE, and one Etihad Guest Mile per US$1 spent abroad when paying with walletplus.

Introduced in partnership with Visa, the Etihad Guest card with walletplus can be used to pay at tens of millions of global merchants, and card holders can withdraw cash at more than 2.1 million ATMs across the world.

Marcello Baricordi, General Manager UAE and Global Accounts Lead at Visa MENA, said: “Visa is delighted to partner with one of the world’s leading premium airline brands – Etihad Airways – to launch here in the Middle East a first of its kind travel card that promises Etihad Guest members the most extensive global reach.

Etihad Guest Tier members in the UAE will begin receiving their new Etihad Guest card with walletplus in early March, with rollout of cards to Etihad Guest members in other countries taking place in the future.