Credit Card News
TAP Air Portugal Launches Co-Branded Credit Card with Cardless
TAP Air Portugal and the FinTech Cardless have debuted a new co-branded rewards credit card for the U.S. market.
About the card:
Cardless has unveiled its latest co-branded credit card offering: the TAP Miles&Go American Express Card. This marks the FinTech’s second airline partnership since launching the LATAM Airlines Mastercard and the LATAM Airlines World Elite Mastercard last year.
The TAP Miles&Go card earns 3x miles on TAP Air Portugal purchases as well as 2x miles on rideshare purchases, hotels, and card rentals. All other purchases earn 1x miles.
In addition to those rewards, the card also includes a number of benefits. These include preferred boarding, two TAP Premium Lounge at Lisbon Airport access passes per year, and two extra checked bags per year. Plus, for every 5 miles that cardholders earn from their spending, they’ll earn 1 status mile toward TAP Miles&Go Status (which also qualifies for Star Alliance status). However, this perk is capped at 10,000 miles per year.
To celebrate the launch, Cardless and TAP are offering a special welcome bonus. First, new cardholders can earn earn up to 40,000 bonus miles after they spend $2,500 in their first 90 days. On top of that, through November 30th, 2023, customers can earn and extra 20,000 bonus miles (for a total of 60,000) for the same spending requirement.
Currently, the TAP Miles&Go card does carry an annual fee of $79.
What they’re saying:
Announcing the new offering, Cardless President and co-founder Michael Spelfogel said, “With Portugal growing as a popular travel destination, we are delighted to partner with TAP Air Portugal, a renowned name in the airline industry, to unveil this credit card to the U.S. market.” Spelfogel continued, “This partnership underscores our commitment to delivering innovative, rewarding, and seamless financial solutions that empower consumers to explore the world.”
Meanwhile, TAP’s Chief Customer OfficerSofia Lufinha said of the offering, “[T]he launch of the TAP Miles&Go American Express card from Cardless is proof of our commitment to the U.S. market. We are thrilled about this partnership and believe that this card will take the customer experience to another level. It’s my privilege to welcome all aboard this exciting new journey.”
My thoughts:
It’s certainly been interesting to see Cardless evolve over the years. After initially launching several sports team-themed cards (many of which have seemingly been discontinued), the company has now apparently found success in producing U.S. co-branded cards for foreign airlines. On the one hand, it seems like a strong idea — although it’s also quite niche. Thus, while the perks of the TAP Miles&Go card seem reasonable for the $79 annual fee, it’s hard to know just how many people would benefit from the card.
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