Credit Card News
FNBO Announces Premium MGM Rewards Iconic Credit Card
After recently teasing that a new co-branded credit card was in the works, FNBO and MGM have now introduced the premium product.
About the MGM Rewards Iconic World Elite Mastercard:
This week, the MGM Rewards Iconic World Elite Mastercard officially debuted. Issued by FNBO, this premium card option joins the existing MGM Rewards World Elite Mastercard.
Starting with rewards, the MGM Rewards Iconic card allows customers to earn 6x points and Tier Credits on purchases at MGM Rewards Destinations. Additionally, cardholders can earn points and Tier Credits on everyday purchases such as 2x on other hotels, 2x on dining, 2x at gas stations, and 2x at grocery stores. All other purchases earn 1 point and 1 Tier Credit per $1 spent on the card.
Next, although the Iconic card will have a $250 annual fee, this will be partially offset by a $200 Resort Credit available to cardholders annually. With this benefit, MGM Rewards members can receive 20,000 MGM Reward Points to redeem toward dining purchases at select venues and more. However, according to the terms, cardholders must be checked in as a hotel guest at a participating MGM Resorts Destinations in order to redeem their Resort Credit and must visit the MGM Rewards Desk to do so. Meanwhile, other new cardholder perks include a statement credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck (available every four years) and an automatic upgrade to MGM Rewards Pearl Status. Plus, Iconic customers enjoy a complimentary Priority Pass for airport lounge access.
The MGM Reward Iconic card also includes benefits to renewing cardholders who spend at least $25,000 on their card during the year. Those who reach this spending milestone will receive a complimentary night worth up to $250 after their cardholder anniversary. Similarly, these spenders will also earn a 10,000 Tier Credit bonus upon renewal.
To mark the launch of the new card, MGM is also offering a special welcome bonus. Currently, new MGM Rewards Iconic cardholders can earn 40,000 bonus points as well as 10,000 Tier Credits after spending $5,000 on the card during the first 3 billing cycles. On top of that, customers can claim a limited-edition metal card as part of the Iconic’s launch celebration.
What They’re Saying:
Announcing the new card, MGM Resorts’ VP of Loyalty Marketing Anil Mansukhani said, “The launch of the Iconic World Elite Mastercard marks an exciting milestone in the evolution of MGM Rewards. This partnership with Mastercard and FNBO unlocks a whole new world of rewards, giving both gaming and non-gaming guests even more ways to experience the unforgettable, world-class moments that define MGM Resorts.”
My Thoughts:
Speaking as someone who visits MGM properties semi-regularly and has even considered the MGM Rewards credit card in the past, I want to highlight some of the pros and cons. I’ll start with my biggest disappointment, which is that the card only earns automatic Pearl status. With this being a premium upgrade, I would have thought they’d one-up the status that the regular no-annual-fee card gets. However, since MGM Gold (which is the next step up from Pearl) features some very big and tangible perks — such as waived resort fees — I suppose they didn’t want to just give this away for cheap. That’s understandable, but it does hurt the Iconic card’s appeal.
As for the good, the $200 Resort Credit is definitely useful given the cost of dining in Vegas. Then again, MGM does make redeeming this perk more complicated than it probably should be. Hopefully, cardholders can just charge their dining purchases to their room and then visit the Rewards desk to redeem their credit in one shot (rather than going to the desk to get the points and then returning to actually use them). Meanwhile, although several credit cards now offer Priority Pass, at $250, the Iconic card’s annual fee is on the low end for this type of perk.
Ultimately, while there are some solid perks to the MGM Rewards Iconic World Elite Mastercard that might justify its annual fee, you’d have to spend an awful lot of money on the card in order to get the most out of it. That’s not only because of the renewal perks that don’t kick in until $25,000 in spending but also because reaching the aforementioned Gold Status requires 75,000 Tier Credits. So, while this may be a good option for frequent MGM guests that might not earn a ton of Tier Credits otherwise (I’m looking at you, Blackjack players), it’s probably not a great deal for everyday guests.
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