[Ki Ha-young's Lifestyle Card] Targeting Brand Loyal Customers... Surge in PLCC Launches

6 Years Since PLCC Introduction, Launch Flood
Led by 'Pioneer' Hyundai Card
Shinhan Card Focuses on Global and Premium
Samsung Card to Launch KakaoPay PLCC in May

Is there anyone these days without at least one credit card? In modern society, anyone can have a card if they want. Credit cards have brought unparalleled convenience to daily life. Now, wherever you go, you can easily see people paying with credit cards or smartphones. As demand has increased, cards with various benefits are being released almost daily. In response, Asia Economy delivers diverse stories related to cards, which are inseparable from our consumer life, through the weekly 'Cards in Daily Life' corner, including introductions to new cards, industry behind-the-scenes, and guides for card beginners.

This year, the card industry is competing to release 'Private Label Credit Cards (PLCC)'. Until last year, only Hyundai Card, the pioneer of PLCC, was active, but this year all card companies are launching PLCCs.

Just last week, two types of PLCCs were released in collaboration with Hyundai Motor Company and IKEA, and at the end of this month, Samsung Card plans to launch its first PLCC, the KakaoPay PLCC, in partnership with KakaoPay. Hana Card plans to release an LG Uplus card at the 'PLFP (Private Label Financial Package)' level, which expands the concept of PLCC. KB Kookmin Card is scheduled to introduce the Happy Point PLCC in the second half of the year.

PLCCs are cards launched through collaboration between card companies and partner companies that want to issue cards. They are similar to co-branded cards but differ in that costs and revenues are shared jointly with the partner company. From the card companies' perspective, there is an advantage of reducing initial costs while acquiring diverse customers. However, consumers may not feel much difference compared to existing co-branded cards.

Hyundai Card launches 'Hyundai Mobility' card... "Focus on Blue Members Points"

On the 26th, Hyundai Card launched the 'Hyundai Mobility' card, an upgraded version of the existing 'Hyundai Blue Members' card. It is a PLCC introduced in partnership with Hyundai Motor Company, characterized by concentrating the accumulated rewards into Blue Members Points. The newly released cards include three types: 'Hyundai Mobility', 'Hyundai Mobility Platinum', and 'Hyundai EV', which maximizes reward benefits for electric and hydrogen vehicle charging.

The 'Hyundai Mobility' card accumulates 1% of the amount spent at all merchants as Blue Members Points without limit when spending over 500,000 KRW per month. When using vehicle maintenance services such as refueling, repairs, and car washing, an additional 2% (up to 300,000 KRW monthly) is accumulated, and when using mobility services like car sharing, an additional 1% (up to 300,000 KRW monthly) is also provided. A special 1.5% accumulation benefit is given when purchasing a new Hyundai vehicle.

The 'Hyundai Mobility Platinum' card offers a basic accumulation benefit of 1.5% when monthly spending exceeds 2 million KRW. Additionally, it provides extra accumulation of 3% and 1.5% in vehicle maintenance and mobility sectors respectively, and a special 2% accumulation benefit when purchasing a new Hyundai vehicle. The 'Hyundai EV' card accumulates up to 100% of the charging amount as Blue Members Points depending on monthly spending (up to 20,000 KRW monthly). The annual fees are 30,000 KRW for Hyundai Mobility and Hyundai EV cards (same for domestic-only and international use), and 70,000 KRW for the Hyundai Mobility Platinum card.

Shinhan Card launches IKEA card... "10% discount at IKEA"

Shinhan Card has launched the 'IKEA Shinhan Card', the first domestic PLCC equipped with the global company IKEA's membership. This is the second global brand PLCC following the Marriott PLCC launched last month. It offers a 10% discount when spending over 50,000 KRW at IKEA's domestic online and offline stores, and a 15% discount when spending over 10,000 KRW at all food stores (restaurants, cafes, bistros, etc.) within IKEA offline stores. The special IKEA discount is provided up to 30,000 KRW per month when spending over 300,000 KRW in the previous month.

The IKEA Shinhan Card automatically includes the membership program 'IKEA Family' and offers a 5% discount service up to 20,000 KRW per month depending on the previous month's spending. The discount applies to major department stores (Hyundai, Shinsegae, Lotte), large discount stores (E-Mart, Homeplus, Lotte Mart), premium outlets (Hyundai, Lotte, Shinsegae Simon), convenience stores (GS25, CU, 7-Eleven), and coffee shops (Starbucks, Ediya). The annual fee is 18,000 KRW for Visa and 15,000 KRW for domestic-only cards.

Hana Card launches partnership card with LG Uplus... "Up to 25% discount on telecom bills"

Hana Card plans to launch the 'U+ Family Hana Card' (tentative name), an exclusive partnership card for LG Uplus's official online mall 'U Shop', on the 3rd. Hana Card named this partnership the country's first 'PLFP (Private Label Financial Package)', which expands beyond PLCC, and announced plans to provide various services through financial service partnerships beyond simple product partnerships.

The 'U+ Family Hana Card' offers a 25% billing discount benefit when registering automatic payment for telecom bills after new issuance. Depending on the previous month's spending, discounts up to 600,000 KRW over two years can be received. Additionally, the card adds 'Hana Money', a Hana Financial Group point, to the U Shop exclusive partnership pack. This partnership pack provides a 7,500 KRW discount coupon usable at partner stores every month for 24 months when subscribing to LTE or 5G plans at U Shop.

KB Kookmin Card to launch Happy Point PLCC in the second half of the year

KB Kookmin Card plans to launch the 'Happy Point PLCC' in the second half of the year in partnership with SPC Group, which owns brands such as Paris Baguette and Baskin Robbins. KB Kookmin Card launched its first PLCC, the Coffee Bean PLCC, in March. The upcoming Happy Point PLCC will provide additional or enhanced customer benefits when using online/mobile channels and SPC Group's own mobile payment application 'Happy Order', based on the benefits related to SPC Group's membership service Happy Point and reflecting big data analysis results.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.