An anonymous reader wrote in today with a bit of information on the future of the Schwab Visa cash back credit card. In case you’re not familiar with this card, it offers 2% cash back deposited into your Schwab brokerage account.
Earlier this year, Schwab stopped accepting applications for this card, but existing cardholders were allowed to keep their card as well as the original terms of the rewards program.
However… Starting on October 1, 2010 they will be transitioning this card over to FIA Card Services and (apparently) ending the relationship with Schwab. What does this mean for existing cardholders? It’s hard to say.
While FIA was the issuer of this credit card all along, and they state that there will be no change, it’s hard to believe that they’ll retain such a lucrative rewards program once they part ways with Schwab, who used this card as a tool to increase their customer base.
Here are the details:
CHARLES SCHWAB BANK WILL NO LONGER SPONSOR THE SCHWAB BANK INVEST FIRST VISA CARD OR THE VISA CREDIT CARD WITH WORLDPOINTS REWARDS.
* On October 1, 2010, FIA Card Services, N.A. will become the sole sponsor of the credit cards, and will make all decisions regarding terms, conditions, and reward programs.
* You may continue to use your Schwab Bank Invest First Visa card or the Visa credit card with WorldPoints rewards subject to their contractual terms.
* There are no changes to your current terms, conditions, or reward programs. FIA Card Services will provide you with notice should any changes be made.
* This change does not affect the debit cards offered by Schwab for the Schwab Bank High Yield Investor Checking account, the Schwab Bank High Yield Investor Savings account, and the Schwab One brokerage account.
If you have any further information, please share it in the comments section.
Heads up! I just got my new BoA replacement card in the mail today. Be on the look out everybody.
I thought I read that there would be fees on foreign transactions. If you are traveling during this period most credit card companies would be sympathetic and credit back the fees during the period of travel. I may be wrong but I recall my wife saying something and that we need to use our Chase card for our United Kingdom stuff.
When I called yesterday there wasn’t much they could do on the phone. She was like “Well I can give you your account number but I don’t have the 4 digit code and you would need that to set it up online. Do you want me to give you your account number?” So I told her no since that really wouldn’t help me since I wouldn’t have the 4-digit code.
On the bright side, she did say the new card should arrive by the end of this week and if it doesn’t to give them a call.
Yup, locked out of the FIA card services website a week ago and still can’t get access to B of A website. When I called today they said my new account number “has no information attached to it.” They sound quite clueless about the transition.
I am a heavy user of the website, especially the temporary use card numbers for different vendors for my business, and am extremely upset about having zero website service, especially since some of my vendors can not be paid now because their limited-dollar-amount virtual cards have hit their limits. It’s completely unreasonable.
The only reason I continue to use the card is because I am traveling and have no other with me.
Does anyone know if the no international fee policy changes with the new card?
BofA will make more off of us now that they have reduced cash bonus to 1% on everything but groceries and gasoline.
I am using the card for groceries and gas only.
I have a Chase Amazon VISA. 3% on Amazon transactions, 2% on dining out and 2% on drugstore purchases.
I have a Chase Freedom that offers 5% rewards on selected quarterly categories which has included groceries and restaurants and will use when those categories are in play. Also Discover card that has 5% on selected quarterly categories and sometimes special one month categories.
I pay my cards off in full every month.
You can reassemble a small group of cards to get higher rewards. I tape the categories to the back of each card so that I keep things straight.
Same situation here. BOM will not get my business again, if i can help it. Be warned that their phone help reads from scripts. Unlikely the info is correct. Ive had to call before and got different answers on 3 separate calls. The way they poorly handled this transition is unbelievable.
If i were int conspiracy theory, I’d think they want to run off customers who pay in full every month, which is probably more likely on the schwab card.
Wow that kinda sucks for you guys. I was able to pay mine off before they wiped out my FIA account. Good luck to those that have to go through the extra hassle. I hope I get my new card soon.
all info on fia site is gone for my account. i called b of a. won’t be able to see credit card information on their website until the new cards are mailed. i was told this will happen in 2-3 weeks. someone in credit card services was able to give me my new credit card number. supposedly (haven’t tried yet), can call in and get account activity and make a payment over the phone.
I had the same problem too. I called fia and they informed me all my info is transferred over to the bank of America website. The agent then proceeded to give me my new cc number.
She told me that’s the number to register my account with.
Hope that helps, will try registering on the boa website when I get home and update all
I just tried to logon my FIA account and been locked out, damn.
FIA locked everyone out.
Paper statement s/b in the mail this week so pay by mail or if you don’t like mail you can pay by phone. They told me there would be no charge for payment by phone thru representative. Can also pay thru phone w/o representative.
DO NOT CONTINUE using FIA card if you have another rewards card. No rewards are accruing between 11/1 and receipt of BofA 3-2-1 card.
Yep same issue here , and no new cards from BOAM in the mail.
Did anyone else get locked out of your account on fia online? How are we supposed to pay our Oct bill etc.?
Haven’t received the BAC card either.
I’m very sorry to see the Schwab/FIA/BofA 2% card bite the dust…
As for other cards, Cap One has no foreign currency fees on most if not all of their regular credit cards.
And, they currently have a “Cash Rewards” MC with 1% back on everything, a 50% cash back bonus once a year, and a one-time $100 bonus, all with no annual fee.
They also have a different “Cash Rewards” MC that offers 2% back on grocery store and gas station purchases, but has a $39 annual fee.
They also have a 2% cash back card for business owners, but it carries a $59 annual fee after the first year.
But the card’s terms and conditions includes the following item:
“Acknowledge and agree that all cards and convenience checks will be used solely for business or commercial purposes and not for personal, family or household purposes.”
Also:
“What information will you need to know when I apply?
We’ll need to know some basic personal information, along with some information about your business—including your business’ total annual revenue and your business Tax ID Number or Employer ID Number.”
http://www.capitalone.com/creditcards/products/browse-all/rewards/
@BACsux – Don’t worry about the credit score hit. It will probably only be 10 points or so, which is pretty meaningless. The attention heaped on credit scores in the past ten years is ridiculous. See this post from The Finance Buff: http://thefinancebuff.com/a-high-credit-score-is-not-necessary-for-the-best-loan-rate.html
Will my credit score lower if I cancel this credit card? or do I just leave this card in limbo (not using it)… what is a good way to counter? cancel or leave it in limbo ?…
wait til you get the next letter. it gets worse.
BAC sux.
AMEX doesn’t seem like a good swap.
got a mail today saying:
1. Travel accident insurance reduced from $100,000 to $25,000
2. no more ID Theft Recovery benefit
3. no more Price Protection
very unattractive deal indeed. look for other card to replace this card.
Does anyone know if the Fidelity 2% Amex is also going the Schwab 2% way? The only reason I think the Fidelity Amex may continue to pay 2% in rewards is because Amex charges a higher cut from merchants on the sale amount than Visa does.
I’ve got a few big charges coming. Then I’m getting rid of the card before they send the new one. I went ahead and signed up for the Amazon Visa since I’ve started buying a lot from there I used to buy locally, even food. 3% cash back on Amazon purchases, 2% on food/gas, 1% everything else, $30 “thanks” Amazon credit for signing up. I did find a 1.5% everything card out there. But I’m not going to bother since I already went for Amazon. Took mere seconds to get that card.
VERY confusing ‘concrete’ details came in the mail yesterday…
After 10/31/11:
1% back on “retail purchases”
2% back on groceries
3% back on gas
2% and 3% back subject to $1500 purchase maximum per quarter, then it goes down to 1%, some of the % is base, some bonus, mechant eligilbility is an issue, you get some other hare-brained points if you redeem into a Merrill/BOA account, and more again if you pay $75 a year for the Privleges Card, yadda yadda yadda, doesn;t matter anyway because FIA will change these terms and your account number, just for fun, every other month anyway.
Just cancel everything on October 20th and avoid the whole clusterf&ck and also cancel any FIA, BOA or Merrill accounts you may have before they jerk you around on them too. Sayonara, best card ever.
There have been no concrete details about the new card’s rewards structure. Everything being tossed around on the net is speculation mostly based on cryptic conversations with FIA customer service and BOA’s (non)reputation.
Some people are (understandably) expecting a less generous reward program and so are preemptively canceling the card or looking into new ones.
@Albert In the BOA welcome kit you got, what are the details of the card? Are they getting rid of the 2% cash back or will there be an annual fee? Thanks in advance
With all those jumping ship to Fidelity, I am worried that they will do what Charles Schwab did and ditch out on the program after a year.
RIP best card ever.
The Fidelity signature card has foreign transaction fees, but looks like the best replacement.
@Matt Thanks, I will be applying for that card. Just got the BOA welcome kit outlining their sh1tty replacement card that I will be canceling ASAP. Thanks again…
@Albert – I’m guessing here, but it’s probably the one linked by my name. It’s also managed by FIA but offered by Fidelity. It’s a Visa that offers 1.5% cash back on up to $15,000 annual spending, then 2% cash back on additional annual spending. It must be linked to a Fidelity account. I always used my mySmart Cash account, rather than a retirement or investment account. Points will be automatically redeemed once 5,000+ are accrued ($0.01/point). Fidelity also offers an AMEX that offers 2% cash back on everything.
@SH “I found a 1.5% cash back card with $0 annual fee and am going to pre-emptively get one.”
Would you mind sharing what card this is?
@Jeff – Your assumption you’ll be able to keep using the card with 2% cash back is incorrect. Read the “We May Ammend This Agreement” section of the terms and conditions. The last sentence of that section states: “We may replace your card with another card at any time.”
I got “the letter” last week. Reading it in detail, it’s a lot of words but says essentially nothing about the “new and exciting” benefits that we’re all geting except for the fact they’re cancelling the card and replacing it with a new one. I found a 1.5% cash back card with $0 annual fee and am going to pre-emptively get one.
Despite the fact FIA missed paying my rewards one month (it came the next month with that next month’s rewards) and their customer service agents being clueless about the card itself, I really liked the ability to set up a limited use temporary card # with a dollar amount I specified. I use that all the time for internet purchases for protection – like the shirts I just ordered from Singpore but didn’t realize the company was in Singapore!
Other than that, I mostly just care about the cash back. I guess they did research and figured it’ll make them more money to irritate a few customers who’ll cancel than keeping the program.
@Matt – I got the Blue Cash Preferred after FMF lised it on his site. He turned me on to the Schwab/FIA 2% card as well. I was aware myself that FIA was BOA so we’ll have to see if we keep the 2%, I will probably change if they don’t.
@Matt – My card is good till Jan of 2013, so we should by law have the right to keep the card under the last accepted agreement until card expiration. (a guaranteed bonus year?) I agree the future doesn’t look good. Love the no foreign transaction fee feature.
@Michael – FIA IS Bank of America. I agree things don’t look good, especially the wording “Soon, you will receive more details from Bank of America about your replacement credit card…”
Those of us with the card have to admit, it was a great ride.
@SH – If you have a family and buy a lot of groceries, the Blue Cash Preferred card is really nice. 6% cash back on groceries, 3% back on gas and at department stores, 1% back on everything else. There is a $75 annual fee, which is easily wiped away (and then some!) by my family’s purchases. The fee is waived for the first year (unless you’re upgrading from a “normal” Blue Cash card, in which case it’s prorated). Cash back can be redeemed for statement credits, gift cards or merchandise once you’ve accrued $25. Unfortunately, you can’t link the cash back to a bank account, or have checks sent to you.
Can’t really be good news that FIA is switching over to BOA. I will keep this board updated if I hear of any changes.
In response to SH, I think Fidelity has a 2% card but you have to jump through quite a bit of hoops to get the card. IMO, if the FIA card drops to 1% or something, I will probably just stick with it. Since there aren’t too many cards out there that offer any better than 1% on everyday purchases. I really hope at least that they keep the no foreign transaction fees thing. That was my primary reason for getting the card to begin
I didn’t get the letter yet. Changing cards can hit the credit score a bit for a while. But is there really a better deal out there? What’s the next best thing to the 2% FIA is/was offering?
Could be the end, I just got a letter telling me I’ll be getting a new Bank of America card to replace the FIA card I have now. No word on rewards but I bet the 2% is done 🙁
Michael,
There is no better card for rewards. Some individual rewards cards offer higher bonus points on categories like Amazon on purchases from Amazon.
If FIA drops to 1% then at least we can say it was great while it lasted. I hope it stays in place and I would not go to Fidelity to open an account just to get their card because there were rumblings that Fidelity might do the same thing Schwab did at some point.
Still loving the card.
Back when the program changed hands from Charles Schwab to FIA (sometime in late 2010), I called FIA and was able get the credits each month to deposit directly into my PNC Checking Account every month automatically. It has done this since and have no complaints.
My closing date is the 23rd of every month and I get the 2% cash back credits usually by the 3rd of the following month. (Before my bill due date!)
I hope FIA keeps this card going. If they change the terms for the worst or add an annual fee, I am a goner! Does anyone know of a good alternative? It seems the Fidelity Investment Rewards Visa Card has 2% cash back (1.5% for the first $15,000). Also you have to open up some brokerage account.
The FIA staff don’t understand this card and cannot answer questions. As long as everything goes smoothly, it’s great. Have a problem – like I did – and you’re out of luck. They couldn’t explain why their system failed to send through my credits. But 2 months later, they came all at once. No explanation. No one to talk to in the meantime. FIA rep didn’t understand the card. I guess they have a lot of plans.
I’ve owned the card since 2008. No annual fee, no foreign exchange fees, 2% unlimited cash back on everything no limit. I pay my bill on time and have never once had a problem. Honest to goodness… what’s to complain about?
As of May 5th, I am still receiving the 2% directly into my Schwab brokerage. This is the absolute best card I’ve ever owned and I’ve never had a customer service issue (with Schwab or FIA). In July, I’m moving to Canada for a 2 year job assignment. I plan to continue using this card for all of my purchases (no forex fee). Does anyone think these terms will change in the near future? Forex? 2% rewards? There was some speculation last year when Schwab dropped the card but it still seems to be the same.
Not paying my bill is not the issue. I tend to pay the balance down to $0 before they even bill me. I use the card for everything possible to get the points and then pay it off fast.
In any case, today is April 1. My point balance has gone from 3,900 down to 0. Activity on points during a billing cycle can’t be seen on-line until a billing cycle ends. And my credit union is slow to update my account information. So I suspect the points are somewhere between being sent and getting posted. Perhaps it was just a fluke they didn’t post last month.
Interesting insight, Bruce. In my experience, however, there has never been a problem getting the cash back before paying the bill. For example: a credit of $46.20 appeared in my checking account on 3/3/11. The debit of $2309.28 came out on 3/4/11. Perhaps this “rule” does not apply if the statement balance is set up for autopay?
I am getting all of my 2% cash right on schedule.
But I am a strange duck that pays my card in full on the cutoff date rather than play the float. Once you are in cycle it is very easy to do. When you pay on the due date it creates a timing problem according to FIA because the payment must be credited before points can be disbursed as cash. Also, if you read the agreement, any violation can result in the suspension of the 2%… late payments, over balance, etc. The credit card companies are taking every opportunity to disallow points when something wrong occurs.
I called FIA to find out why the points from Feb were not credited as cash in March. I have now gone through another billing cycle with points due and am 1 day into yet another billing cycle. Points continue to accumulate. I got a very nice guy on the phone who didn’t know anything and said the problem is for their “world points” division. Clark Howard calls this Customer NoService. I’m giving it a week to be credited before calling back.
I got my 2% in Feb. I didn’t get my 2% in March. I checked Schwab and FIA. The rewards are still sitting in FIA and never auto-sent. I just changed it to my checking account to see if they’ll honor the points this month.
Anyone else have a problem getting their 2% in March. This may be the beginning of the end of a good thing.
I’m still getting my 2% as well, this is the BEST deal out there , i agreewith the customer service but thankfully I do not need to call them as everything works. I made $2000 last year on this card and hoping to continue , there is no one else who would give you this deal. They are not making a penny off of me as I pay my balance off every month 🙂
I also still have schwab account and fia credit card and as of 1/26 the 2% is still being deposited monthly into the schwab account. have not had any problems yet. What is everyone griping about, its been a great deal???
Like Kathy, I too am still receiving FIA’s 2% in my Schwab acct as of Jan 2011. But I concur with most of the other comments about FIA’s truly awful handling of billing inquiries. They won’t allow the launch of a billing inquiry electronically like AMEX; refuse to communicate by e mail; their phone service sucks; so snail mail has been my fall back. But always send your snail mail as certified USPS mail with return receipt requested, about $6, or use FEDEX or similar. Even then I’ve had FIA ignore my mail, and had to send follow up, again certified. Eventually you can get their attention and get disputes resolved, but you might begin to question if the 2% is worth it!
i still have schwab account and fia credit card. as of 1/11 the 2% is still being deposited monthly into the schwab account. have not had any problems yet.
I will go to my Chase Freedom; not BofA.
I stopped banking with BofA in 1981 when they charged me $7.46 interest on a late payment. The problem was I hand delivered the payment to the teller who said she could not input the information immediately. It took 3 days to show as credited.
BofA can only imagine how much business they lost over the past 30 years as a result of that stupid move. Up to that point I was one of those students who was thrilled that BofA would give a student their very own BankAmericard. Small credit line of $200 back in that day but so helpful in dealing with student life.
Chris Ross said: “The FIA Card Services Visa sucks! Stay away from this card and stick with a bank not run by a bunch of crooks!”
You mentioned you’ll be transferring you credit line to B of A. You do realize B of A owns FIA card services, right?
That being said, thank you for sharing your horror story. I’ll know what to expect if I ever have an issue.
Unfortunately, you and I are getting a lesson of what happens when a credit card issued to an elite few suddenly find themselves among what can best be described as “credit cards for the masses”.
I had a similar problem with a fraud issue. Last year I had a fraud issue and it was taken care of immediately when it was a Schwab-sponsored credit card. Now, we are lumped in with the masses and treated accordingly. I was able to resolve my fraud issue on my own. If FIA lowers the rewards to 1% which I expect to happen I will drop the card immediately in favor of my Chase Freedom card. The level of service is as good or better as the former Schwab card.
12/29/2010
This is the worst card I have ever had. Ever since Schwab handed it off to FIA the service has been worse than trying to get your order right at a fast food drive thru window!
Three days ago I received a FedEx package. I was expecting a couple things via FedEx so I opened it. To my shock, it was a prescription medication with my name on the bottle but it’s not a medication I’ve ever taken and certainly NEVER ordered on the internet with my Visa card!
Long story short, I’ve spent 3 days and 210 minutes on the phone with the pharmacy to try and ship this item back and get a credit and with Visa trying to file a dispute.
FIA disconnected me twice and the rep I spoke to in the dispute dept. said “well you need to work with this merchant to return their product before we can help you”
An online pharmacy, ilegal and who wont give me an actual address is who I’m supposed to spend another 2 1/2 hours on the phone with before FIA will help me with after my credit card number was stolen?
Are you serious? I’m so mad about this that I’m going to transfer the line of credit back to the B of A card it was on.
I have never paid a late bill and use that card for everything. My line of credit is$ 30,000 and some months business and personal expenses come close to that and I pay it off monthly.
I suppose that’s why they wont help me, I never have to pay interest so they never make money on me.
When it was a Schwab Visa I had a similar dispute issue. I phone Visa and they literally handled everything for me. Including sending pre-paid shipping labels to ship the item back.
Now they could care less and have caused me more aggrevation than I can even explain.
I can’t even handle making one more call to them about this. I’ve spend 3 hours on the phone over 3 days just on hold. Then there is the time I’m actually speaking to someone.
The FIA Card Services Visa sucks! Stay away from this card and stick with a bank not run by a bunch of crooks!
There is no doubt the 2% will be gone.
The thing I immediately noticed was after 10/1 when you called in you had to wait 10-15 minutes for someone to come on the line. While Schwab was the sponsor they picked up the phone almost instantly.
No one mentioned that FIA got rid of that lucrative restaurants.com program immediately after they took over. Fortunately shopathome.com duplicates what fia offered previously re restaurants.com
I find the fia service post schwab to be terrible and will ride it out and have a card ready to go the moment fia drops the 2%. I’ll be darned if I will wait on hold 15-20 minutes for one percent when I can get thru on Chase much quicker.
^Are you sure you’re going to the right website? It is: https://www.ibsnetaccess.com
I just tried it and I have no problem accessing my account. Also check your computer settings and try a different browser.
I have not been able to access my FIA (formerly Schwab) Visa card via the Internet for over three weeks. If I can’t see my bill online, I am going to cancel this card even if it does give 2% back!
I just logged into my account to check my balance and the “rewards” tab is no longer there. This is a change from a few days ago. I didn’t get notice that the rewards program was being discontinued. Did I miss something?
I just checked that FIA deposited a 2% cashback into my schwab account on Nov. 3rd. I think they are keeping up the reward program for now. But I’ll keep an eye on this and as soon as they stop doing it I’ll switch over to Fidelity…
I just got a letter today from FIA card service saying that the Bill Pay Choice service will no longer let you pay by credit card, I think the 2% cash back will be gone soon, they are doing this one step at a time, seems like they are trying to drive customers out the door, how idiot they are or I should say how smart they are !
I hope they keep the 2% too!
I had an auto-pay set up for 10/2, and didn’t even think about that being a problem. well, I logged into the fiacardservices site today, and it it looks pretty much just like it used to (my login credentials are the same, too). It shows that I “have” an auto pay scheduled for 10/2. I’m not worried that it hasn’t posted, because Schwab used to do that too – if the pay date fell on a weekend, they’d post it the Monday afterwards.
I was also very happy to see the option of adding my checking account to receive my rewards directly, instead of having the Scwhab account as a “middleman”. I don’t know how long the 2% will last, but at least for now it looks as though they’ve handled the transition very well.
I primarily use the Schwab VISA for travel or purchases abroad since there are no foreign transaction fees. Anyone know if this is going to change or will that benefit remain?
I use this card to pay all my bills, but when I registered to fiacardservices.com and found that all my payee setups are gone
No card comes close to this. If FIA lets us keep the 2% (maybe the card user base is small enough – insignificant) – this is the best possible card. It’s even better now as you can dump the cb into any account you want.
Amex, Discover are not comparable to Visa or MC cash back cards… apples and oranges.
My backup to this card is a citi dividend rewards with 1% on all and 3% on some categories. Maybe the chase freedom, but I’ve got history with the dividend cards, so probably that one.
I can confirm FIA Card Services allowed me to switch the deposit account for my 2% cash back to my checking account and away from my Schwab brokerage. I logged-in through fiacardservices.com yesterday and was presented with the option to change accounts under the “Rewards” tab. I’m going to keep using this card as long as the 2% back is available.
I called Schwab and they told me that when the card transfers as of 10/1 that they will still honor the 2% cash back with the option of depositing into a checking/savings instead. I don’t how long this is going to last or if they are just stringing me along until the end of the month but I will be replacing this card with the AMEX Blue Cash. All good things must come to an end I guess.
@vesalius-
FIA has always handled the Schwab rewards Visa card. The concern is that the card earns 1 point for each dollar spent, which is then redeemed at 2% every month into a Schwab brokerage account. Since Schwab is no longer “sponsoring” this card, it stands to reason that FIA will not send your points at a 2% clip to a Schwab account forever. Yes, it is rather silly to continually chase the best rewards credit card and mourn the loss of a favorite, but there are lots of us out there…
The Schwab card is switching to the same issuer that the Fidelity cards, both the Visa (1.5% up to $15,000 and 2% thereafter) and the Amex (2% on everything), use. So Fia will now be handling both the Schwab and the Fidelity cards. I understand neither the handwringing nor the reasoning for switching to fidelity?
@Mark-
Fidelity does allow you to transfer the cash back from their reward cards out immediately. To go this route, you’ll obviously want to avoid linking the credit card rewards to a retirement account. I used the Fidelity Visa linked to a mySmart account for a while and was very satisfied. When my Schwab card no longer offers 2%, I’ll likely start using my Fidelity Visa again.
FIA card services is MBNA, which BofA bought in 2008. I don’t doubt this was a HUGE money loser for Schwab, all my coworkers and friends have this card, our average bills are $5k/month each charging international business trips on them. By the end of the year, most of us are easily over $1000 in cash back, plus save on FOREX fees.
FIA issues a LOT of cards out there, including my Bank of America credit cards (i know this because the statements for BoA are nearly identical to the Schwab Invest First card – same stripe on the envelope and everything). So far I’ve had a good experience with them on everything.
Also, there website is NOT deceptive or hard to read. I’ve always logged into the FIA website to get info on my schwab card’s balance and to get the statements. It is very straightforward.
I’m curious about what will happen with the 2%…I hope they keep it. I would prefer a statement credit.
I got the letter too…I’m just going to wait it out and see what happens. I wouldn’t know which card to get next to get the best bang for your buck. The thing I liked about Schwab (call me a mooch) was that you could transfer your money out immediately after getting the cash back. My investments are all with Vanguard and I didn’t want to have multiple investment accounts.
Does anyone know with the Fidelity cards if you can transfer the money out after they deposit it to a regular bank account?
I got the letter too. It is sad news to read for someone who just moved their checking and savings to Schwab so my checking, savings, credit, and brokerage could all be under one umbrella.
This is from the Fidelity Web site.
Who is FIA Card Services, N.A.?
FIA Card Services, N.A. is the issuer and administrator of the Fidelity American Express® and Visa® credit cards. FIA Card Services is not an affiliate of Fidelity, but Fidelity has worked with them to offer this credit card program to our customers. If you are an existing cardmember and have questions about your card, please call FIA Card Services, N.A. at 877-811-7088.
A buddy of mine got a notice that his 2% is gone as of 10/1. He immediately applied for the Fidelity Amex. I think it is only 1.5% up to $5,000 and 2% thereafter (so a small net loss per year).
Fidelity has a 1.5% cash back card and a 2% AmEx Card.
I’ve enjoyed my Schwab card while it lasted.
Nickel, I think it’s time to start a “Best Cash Back/Rewards Card” post.
Some FIA cards carry a $75 annual fee.
Keep an eye on your mail.
FIA tends to send statements that do not have their name on the face of the envelope.
They mail it in a regular sized envelope; not your typical smaller bill envelope.
You may think it’s junk mail and throw it away.
(deception?)
If you see your statement online – you will only see your min amount due, and its hard to see your statement balance. Hopefully they won’t do this to sophisticated Schwab customers.
Don’t expect the 2% to hang around for long.
PenFed Credit Union has a good 5% cash back on gas card.
With 1% cash on everything else.
All CASH – as a statement credit – no games.
You have to open a share draft account first.
This process can take time.
Their cd rates are also among the best.
Not a bad bank to belong to.
Amex is good – but I’m not spending 6 months reaching $6,500 to start getting cash back rewards.
More info about the “de-branding” of the Schwab card. Apparently the 2% rewards will still go into the Schwab brokerage, but FIA can change that when they want to.
Will my Invest First cash back rewards continue to be deposited into my Schwab One brokerage account? Hide details
FIA Card Services is making no changes to your current terms, conditions, or reward programs. FIA Card Services will provide you with notice if any changes should be made and will explain these changes at a time and in a manner consistent with its commitment to providing clear information to its customers. Schwab will not participate in these changes in any way.
I wish they just gave the cards out to those who transferred their brokerage accounts to Schwab.
It is probably the means for getting rid of us that have been enjoying that 2%