Banks in Malaysia are testing various promotions to win back credit card customers after an annual credit card tax introduced early this year sparked a sharp decline in the nation’s total credit card accounts.
According to data the Malaysian government’s finance ministry released recently, the number of credit card accounts in the country dropped 13% to 8.7 million as of Sept. 30 from 10 million accounts a year earlier.
Observers attribute the decline in large part to millions of cardholders cancelling their accounts after the government imposed an annual tax of 50 ringgits ($US16 and 12 Euros) for a primary credit card and 25 ringgits for a supplementary card beginning January 1, 2010 (
Certain Malaysian banks are responding to the setback with promotions and enhanced rewards programs to spark customers’ interest in credit cards.
Kuala Lumpur-based Maybank Sdn Bhd is offering extra rewards points and cash-back deals to returning accountholders. Customers who reactivate their cards will receive 10,000 rewards points that may be considered a bonus to offset the cost of the tax.
Standard Chartered Sdn Bhd also is offering cash-back rewards to consumers who successfully apply for its Gold and Platinum credit cards under a promotion that is expected to run through the end of January 2011. Under the promotion, Gold cardholders receive an account credit of 88 ringgits, while Platinum cardholders receive a credit of 188 ringgits.
An official from Standard Chartered tells PaymentsSource that the cash-back promotion is expected to help offset the cost of the card tax for new card applicants.
A customer service representative for Maybank Sdn Bhd says a new program to provide rewards for returning cardholders is a possibility, but the bank did not immediately return calls confirming plans.
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