Credit cards were introduced primarily keeping two things in purview; firstly it was designed to boost the market, and secondly to open up an avenue of cash withdrawal apart from the banks. The initiation of the cards lended cash right into the hands of the consumers, and Shopping volume and capacity increased manifold. And the alternative for cash withdrawal from the ATM kiosks cut short the amount of time wasted standing at the bank queues. However apart from these two features, the card convention opened up another new dimension- paved the way for globalization. As the credit cards were extremely fast in their deed of captivating the ?audience?, banks; the sole medium of authorizing and issuing them, began to feel the heat. And as the days passed away, more and more banking players began to tread in this newer pasture. This whole thing in a very short span of time made the world a small place, a small and interconnected one. As more and more features of the card, in its number of forms began to get unleashed, Shopping beyond the border was no longer a dream. The way in which a credit card functions is simple. It is actually a statement given by the authorizing bank, enabling the user to buy stuffs using the card. And the most important part is- he doesn?t have to pay for it right then and there. All he has to do is pay the credited sum, to the bank, at a later time at his convenience. This is not only an user friendly approach but also revolutionized the commercial segment in a big way. Sales began to flourish and the ?new world order? was achieved, at least some kind of it.
Credit cards are classified into a number of subtypes, based on various features. These features are nothing but the added benefits they bring, apart from fulfilling the basic two tasks they were made for. In the realm of the card, the fight for glory is among two champions- namely the Platinum card and the visa card. However as time went on, the Platinum one tilted the edge in his favor. We should actually get into the topic in a bit more detailed manner. The Platinum card is much like the metal it is named after. Just like Platinum it is the most expensive and exclusive card in the realm. The benefits that a Platinum card brings to its users are nothing short of a luxury treat. Firstly they command huge discounts and guaranteed cash backs. And secondly, almost all leading service providers such as leading restaurants and dining chains, Shopping destinations, e-commerce sites, hotels, travel websites, hospitals; so as to say every large scale service provider is on the grid with the Platinum card. And thus while using places and availing facilities as of one?s standard, the card becomes not only effective but handy as well. The winds of globalization ushered by the credit card convention hit the developing countries in the same manner as it did Europe and the Americas. And for this the example of India can be given. The open world trade led to the rapid and massive development of cities such as Gurgaon / Gurugram, Hyderabad, and Bangalore, breaking away from the age old quadrilateral of Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai. And in these new cities, with all the world class facilities available, having a credit card for Shopping became a must. And with the word credit card we definitely mean the Platinum ones of course. As in this regard the other options are nothing but vintage trash.
Apply for best Platinum Shopping credit cards in Gurgaon / Gurugram
| Different Types of Credit Cards and Types | Joining Fee | Annual Fee |
|---|---|---|
| ICICI Bank™ Platinum Chip Credit Card | 0 | 0.00 |
| ICICI Bank™ Coral Credit Card | 500 | 500.00 |
| RBL™ Bank Platinum Delight Credit Card | 1000 | 1000.00 |
| RBL™ Platinum Maxima Credit Card | 2000 | 2000.00 |
Chqbook Review
The ICICI Bank's Coral Credit Card comes in cheap – at just a Rs. 500 annual fee, you can actually get this back in the first month itself by going for the 1+1 movie offer from BookMyShow™. Not only that, we also like that you can get your points converted to credit into your statement and the free quarterly visit to Domestic Airports and Railway Lounges are an added plus. Go for this card if you like Movies, travel once in a while and like earning points which actually translate to money.
PROS
- We love the 1+1 movie offer from bookmyshow™. It also helps that you can book tickets any day of the week.
- For someone who travels once in a while, the free access to domestic airport lounges with the ICICI Bank Coral Credit Card is a great plus. Also, its one of the few cards to throw in free access at Railway lounges too once in a quarter
- You can redeem your Payback™ points in cash which gets credited to your card account. With each Payback™ point worth ₹0.25, you are going to want to count each point!
- Mark all the HPCL petrol pumps on your map – the ICICI Bank Coral Credit Card allows you to get a 1% fuel surcharge waiver on all fuel transactions below ₹4000. Just make sure the card is swiped on an ICICI Bank swipe machine.
CONS
- The 1+1 movie offer from bookmyshow is on a first come first serve basis. If the quota for the day gets over, it can get frustrating.
Chqbook Review
The ICICI Bank™ Platinum Chip Credit Card is one of the best first credit card you can have. Not only it comes with zero joining fee and annual fee, its got everything going from Reward Points, fuel waiver etc. Go for this card if you are new to credit cards and want to get your feet wet.
PROS
- With no joining fee – it's one of the cheapest cards available and packs great features. Great Value for Money.
- We like that even the ₹199 Joining fee is waived off if your purchases exceed ₹2000 within 60 days of the card setup date and you work at select corporates1
- You get points through Payback – since other cards also use Payback you can actually see all your points adding up from different cards at one place.
- Mark all the HPCL petrol pumps on your map – the ICICI Bank Platinum Chip Credit Card allows you to get a 1% fuel surcharge waiver on all fuel transactions below ₹4000. Just make sure the card is swiped on an ICICI Bank swipe machine.
CONS
- The ICICI Bank Platinum Chip Credit Card does not come with any flight benefits or lounge access.
Chqbook Review
The RBL Platinum Delight Credit Card rewards first time or new credit card users with enough points to make it save more than the fees every year. We also loved the 2x Rewards on the weekends, the fuel surcharge waiver and getting to earn 1000 Bonus Rewards points every month
PROS
- We liked the Rewards on ALL purchases with no exclusions – this card dosent make you stop and think before using it!
- The Monthly Bonus of 1000 Reward points is great – that too on just 5 transactions per month. Worth it!
- This is one of the few credit cards which still give a fuel surcharge waiver every month – save upto ₹150 per month on fuel surcharge
- Annual fees of ₹1000 is waived off next year if you spend ₹1,50,000 in the previous year – that's only ₹12.5k a month
- Each Reward Point is worth ₹0.25 and you can rake up approx much more than you spend on the initial fees while spending ₹10–12k per month – go for it!
CONS
- No flight or lounge access is included – if those don?t matter to you, this card is perfect
Chqbook Review
The RBL Platinum Maxima credit card is a must for movie-goers & frequent travellers. It has a great Rewards program and also gives you free movie tickets every month. This card is an all-rounder with reward points on shopping, flights & almost all other categories of spends.
PROS
- We love the free movie tickets every month–it's through BookMyShow™ and works like a charm
- Rewards really count. You can get as much as ₹20K per year back just from the rewards–all redeemable against flight tickets, movie tickets and e–vouchers
- Get 8000 points when you use the card the first time, plus the annual rewards (10K points on spends of ₹2 Lakhs) are itself worth ₹5?6K
- Domestic lounge access is a must and the RBL Platinum Maxima credit card delivers on that–2 free lounge access at major domestic airports per quarter
CONS
- We are missing converting points to statement credit–that's handy on a rainy day.
- The 1% Surcharge on Fuel transaction value or Rs. 10, whichever is higher – is something we dont like.
