(Rumor) Could Citi DoubleCash Be The Next “New” Hotness
Doctor of Credit dropped a potential bomb shell over the weekend that may have gone unnoticed with the holiday. It is a potential rumor that could pay dividends for DoubleCash cardholders and Citi ThankYou points loyalists (is that a thing?). After Citi just torpedoed their travel insurance perks on ALL cards could they be throwing Citi DoubleCash cardholders a bone? The bombshell is that you will be able to turn Citi DoubleCash cashback into ThankYou points.
UPDATE: According to a reddit user the Citi Doublecash will have a 1 to 1 transfer rate. If that is the case then Citi would become a behemoth in the miles and points space. Especially with how hot ThankYou points have become with the Turkish Miles sweet spots. HT DoC
Where is this Coming From?
A reader noticed a announcement on their statement that said in the Fall of 2019 that it will be possible to convert Citi Double Cash rewards into Citi ThankYou Points. It did not give any details on the conversion rates though.
What Does This Mean?
Without having more details on the conversion rates we are speculating from here on out.
If it was a 1 to 1 conversion that would make the Citi DoubleCash an everyday spending machine. We would earn 2 ThankYou points per dollar on every purchase. That would only be trumped by the Blue Business Plus from American Express that earns 2 Membership Rewards points per dollar. Although the BB+ does comes with a $50K per year spending cap. If this was to be uncapped it could be a better option for big spenders.
That means we would be able to get 2.5% back on every purchase, if the points were redeemed via their travel portal. I would assume that a premium card like the Citi Premier card may be needed to unlock this feature.
It would be similar to how the Chase Freedom needs the Chase Sapphire Reserve to unlock point transfers.
I think it is more likely that they will give .75 points per 1 cent or a transferable rate of 1.5 points per dollar of spend. That would put it in line with the Chase Freedom Unlimited and it’s 1.5X earning rate. This would actually be a devaluation, netting you a return of 1.875% per dollar based on a 1.25 cent redemption. You may be able to do better if you had a specific transfer in mind though.
Knowing Citi they will probably give a .5 points per 1 cent transfer which would make this worthless. I am only partially serious here…but come on it is Citi we are talking about.
Final Thoughts
If Citi makes this a one to one transfer, Citi Doublecash to ThankYou points, I would actually consider making the ThankYou points program a priority. Right now I don’t put a ton of effort into the ThankYou program because I prefer Ultimate Rewards and Membership Rewards. Both of those points are easier to earn as well. This could change things.
Citi has a chance to make a statement here. Whether or not they follow through on this promising development remains to be seen. And even if they do there is no telling how long it will last before they nerf it all together anyway. It is Citi after all!
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Citi has been begging me for months to downgrade my DC card to the Dividend+ Not sure I see the logic in confusing cash earners with points accumulators? I figured the offer was a precursor to eliminating the card offering. I already book a ton of TYP with special offers on my antique Sears MC with fewer conversion offers than before.
Looks as if the banks are starting to clean up their profit statements.
It is weird how they cross promote cards for product changes.
I have two premier cards, so I’m more than willing to product change one. From your perspective, would changing one to the DC make sense or do you see a better option?
I think switching it to the DC makes sense if this rumor becomes true. The other option would be the Rewards+ which gets you a 10% back on redeemed points up to 10K per year.
One issue would be downgrading to the DC could reset your 24 month clock since it would most likely lead to a new credit card number.
I’ve had the Double Cash card for years. It’s a nice 2% back card but has tended to remain at the bottom of the wallet in favor of other travel points cards. Would be awesome if Citi allows a 1:1 transfer to ThankYou points, but won’t believe it until I see it. (Even then, it will still be #2 or #3 until the first card year on my Chase Freedom Unlimited with 3% has past.)
The 3X with the CFU is hard to beat. This move would put it up there just below the BB+ in terms on non bonus spend, in my opinion at least. Would be nice to have it for online Costco orders and other places that don’t take Amex.
I don’t see why they would make the cash back convertible at 2c:1TYP. That’s like a weaker version of the Rewards+, with no roundup, no 10% rebate, and the requirement to pay in full (a lot of people, including myself, are taking advantage of the 0% intro APR, and don’t want to wait 12+ months to get the full amount of points).
I think that is the least likely option of the bunch but with Citi nothing is off the table.
Can you please elaborate on the benefits of the 0% intro APR or direct me in the right direction, appreciate it, thank you.
After a couple of years of not having the Premier card, I was just approved for this card. I got this card to unlock all those ATTMore TY points. I will let those ATTMore points just ride where they are, until needed for travel and roll them up to the Premier card. I could see this the same way with that Citi Double card. There is hardly a good reason to get the Prestige card as they keep killing off features. Also, it has been over 2 years since having this card, but I am afraid I would not get bonus points on that card due to the family rule. I sure would like to know if this is possible though.
Currently for TYP cards it is 24 months since you have opened or closed a ThankYou card account. The 48 month rule is currently only on the AA cards. So if it has been 24 months since you closed the old Premier card you should be good for the bonus.