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Cardless Launches Two Qatar Airways Co-Branded Credit Cards
The FinTech startup Cardless is partnering with Qatar Airways to offer two new co-branded cards to the American market.
About the cards:
Recently, Cardless introduced its two latest rewards credit cards: The Qatar Airways Privilege Club Signature Card and the Qatar Airways Privilege Club Infinite Card.
Starting with the Signature card, it earns 4x Avios on Qatar Airways purchases plus 2x Avios on dining purchases, and 1x Avios on all other purchases. Additionally, cardholders can earn 2 Qpoints for every 2,000 Avios they earn using the card. This will help customers move closer to earning higher Privilege Club status.
Speaking of status, with the Signature card, cardholders will enjoy automatic Privilege Club Silver status for their first year. This tier — which also includes oneworld Ruby status — allows flyers to earn a 25% tier bonus on eligible flights, includes priority check-in and boarding, grants them lounge access, and more.
As a welcome bonus, Cardless is currently offering up to 40,000 Avios to new Qatar Airways Privilege Club Signature cardholders — 20,000 Avios after they make their first transaction and another 20,000 Avios after spending at least $3,000 on the card within their first 90 days. The Signature card does carry an annual fee of $99.
Moving on to the Infinite card’s rewards, it earns 5x Avios on Qatar Airways purchases, 3x on dining purchases, and 1x Avios on all other purchases. Additionally, cardholders can earn 2 Qpoints for every 1,500 Avios earned using the card.
Like with the Signature card, the Infinite also includes complimentary Privilege Club status in your first year — but, in this case, it ups it to Gold. With Gold Privilege club status (which is also oneworld Sapphire), customers will earn a 75% tier bonus on eligible flights, preferred seats, extra bag allowance, lounge access, Al Maha “meet and assist” service at Hamad International Airport in Doha, and more.
Currently, new Qatar Airways Privilege Club Infinite cardholders can earn a 50,000 Avios welcome bonus. This includes 25,000 Avios after their first purchase and 25,000 Avios — plus 150 Qpoints — after they spend at least $5,000 on the card in their first 90 days. Of note: the Qatar Airways Privilege Club Infinite card has a $499 annual fee.
What they’re saying:
Commenting on the new cards, Cardless’s co-founder and president Michael Spelfogel said, “We are thrilled to unveil this strategic partnership with Qatar Airways Privilege Club and introduce their first credit cards in the U.S. market. This collaboration underscores the synergies between our innovative financial solutions and Qatar Airways Privilege Club’s commitment to enhancing the premium travel experience. Together, we are poised to deliver unparalleled benefits and convenience to our customers, facilitating their travels to world-class destinations around the globe.”
Additionally, Qatar Airways Chief Commercial Officer Thierry Antinori stated, “We are proud to be partnering with Cardless to introduce the first Qatar Airways Privilege Club Credit Cards in the U.S. market, which also includes being the first international airline loyalty program to offer a Visa Infinite credit card. This partnership with Cardless demonstrates our commitment to collaborating with pioneers in the financial technology industry to enhance the benefits for our Privilege Club members.”
My thoughts:
It’s funny to me that Cardless originally found its niche in creating credit cards for professional sports teams. Now, it looks as though all of those programs have been discontinued and the company has pivoted to offering American market cards for foreign airlines (with the exception of the Simon American Express card). Also interesting is the fact that the new Qatar cards are Visas whereas the LATAM card is a Mastercard and Cardless previously announced a partnership with American Express.
Anyway, as for the viability of these cards, I suppose that will heavily depend on how often you intend to fly on Qatar Airways. That said, since the currency these cards earn is Avios — which is also used by the likes of British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, and others — and the oneworld status that corresponds to Privilege Club status, perhaps there’s a play here even if you don’t intend on flying Qatar metal.
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Other Articles by Kyle Burbank
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