MBNA is now saving the top spot in its front page for American Express card. With a recent Supreme Court decision that removes the restriction from Visa and MasterCard, MBNA became "the first and the only U.S. financial institution to issue American Express-branded credit cards."
So far, only one card is offered: MBNA Rewards American Express Card. The core terms are:
- No Annual Fee
- Reward is based on MBNA's WorldPoints network:
- Get 2,500 bonus WorldPointsSM after making your first purchase with the card
- Double WorldPointsSM on dining and travel until January 1, 2006
- Earn 1 point for every purchase dollar you spend with your card
- Redeem for cash, air travel, hotel stays, or car rentals in the U.S., and brand-name merchandise
- Annual APR at 10.15%
- At least 25 days of grace period
Frankly speaking, I don't find the reward enticing at all. As American Express is charging merchants a higher transaction fee than Visa and MasterCard, one should expect a better reward system than the current system that is even a bit worse than 1% cashback (see "How MBNA Takes Away Your Benefits, Gradually" -- one needs to accumulate 25,000 points before getting a 1% cashback). A rational consumer should look elsewhere: the straight 1%-cashback MBNA CashBack Card with additional 10% cashback opportunities at the start, or the up-to-5%-cashback Blue Cash from American Express are much better deals.