Hong Leong Bank (HLB) launched Malaysia’s first limited edition Hello Kitty debit card to appeal to young ladies and women with young children. The launch of the card is in line with BNM effort in promoting cashless payment.

The new Hello Kitty Debit Card is dedicated to ladies and offers tailor made privileges and special edition Hello Kitty collectibles for HLB customers.

In conjunction with the launch, HLB is giving away special Grand Prize of Hello Kitty Suzuki Swift 1.5L car when customers deposit and apply for a HLB Debit Card.

Qualification of Contest:

a) Open a NEW Hong Leong Savings or Current Account/‐i with a minimum deposit of Ringgit Malaysia OneThousand (RM1,000.00) + Apply for a Hong Leong Hello Kitty Debit Card/ Hong Leong Debit Card (Blue)  = 20 entries or;

b) Upgrade a Hong Leong/ EON Bank ATM Card to a Hong Leong Hello Kitty Debit Card/ Hong Leong Debit Card(Blue) + Deposit Ringgit Malaysia Three Hundred (RM300.00)  = 10 entries or;

c) Every deposit of Ringgit Malaysia One Thousand (RM1,000.00) into an existing Hong Leong Savings or CurrentAccount/‐i   = 1 entry

For more information about the terms and conditions:

http://www.hlb.com.my/promo/pfs/dep_kitty/tc_en.pdf

18 Credit Cards Issuers

• Affin Bank Berhad
• Alliance Bank Berhad
• AmBank Berhad
• Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad
• Bank Simpanan Nasional
• CIMB Bank Berhad
• Citibank Berhad
• EON Bank Berhad
• Hong Leong Bank Berhad
• HSBC Bank (Malaysia) Berhad
• Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank)
• OCBC Bank Berhad
• Public Bank Berhad
• RHB Bank Berhad
• Standard Chartered Bank (Malaysia) Berhad
• United Overseas Bank Malaysia Berhad
• AEON Credit Services (M) Berhad
• MBF Cards Sdn Bhd

Malaysian credit card – Getting your first or a new Malaysian credit card is not as easy as it seems. With a handful of banks that offer credit cards in Malaysia, this can be quite a daunting task.

The card is like a double edged sword. It can be a very useful tool but it’s also capable of causing serious damage to the owner if used improperly. Therefore, it is crucial to understand which credit card you should choose and which you should be avoiding.

Malaysian Credit Card

With the new credit card tax, here are some criteria which should be taken into consideration:

Spending habits

First of all, you should know understand the purpose of the card and the way you intend to use it. With different purposes, there are cards which will be suitable for your spending methods.

-Paying full. If you are those who pay the bills in full every month, you should be looking for a credit card with no annual fee and a longer grace period while the interest rate can be neglected

-Carry balance. If you are those who like to drag payments, you should opt for a card which offers you the lowest interest rate possible.

-Main card. If you will be using the Malaysian credit card as the main card, consider getting one with a higher credit limit as well as giving fabulous rewards and incentives.

Credit limit

The credit limit is the amount of money that the bank allows you to borrow. This can be a few thousands up to millions depending on your credit history. Look for the most lenient banks which offer you a higher credit limit as you can use the money for emergencies. As long as you can control on your spending, having higher credit limit is always better.

Fees and penalties

When you are getting your card, double check the fees and penalties that will be incurred. The fees can be for transactions on transfer, cash advance or even increasing your credit limit. The penalties can be on paying your bills late. Get a credit card that really benefits you and not one that burns a hole in your pocket with their penalties and fees.

Rewards

Check out for Malaysian credit card that offers various rewards such as reward points, cash back, travel miles that can be easily earned and redeemed. Do take note that there are some terms and conditions in some of the cards on the limit of cash backs or points that you can earn.

Credit Cards Interest- Credit cards holder are advised to discipline themselves when they spend and to make their payment prompt as the credit cards interest for outstanding balance is very high.

Even though you can opt to pay the interest only every month, the best practice is to make full payment of the outstanding balance every month.

Most of the banks in Malaysia offer tiered interest following the Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) credit card interest rate.

Credit Card Interest

For those who pay the bills on time, you will be rewarded with the tiered interest rate structure as follow:

-13.5%/annum (paid on time for 12 consecutive months)

-16%/annum (paid on time for at least 10 out of 12 months)

-17.5%/annum (paid on time for less than 9 out of 12 months)

Based on the figure above, you can enjoy credit card interest rates as low as 13.5% on the 13th month if you paid on time for the previous 12 consecutive months.

Even so, there are also some financial institutions that offer lower interest such as American Express credit card with only 9%/annum.

Credit card holders can opt to pay 5% or RM50 of the outstanding balance depending which is higher but it would take around 2 years to clear the debts provided there is no additional spending. In addition to that, those who do not make full payments are subject to finance charges.

Last but not least, there are also late payment charges of minimum RM5 of 1% of outstanding balance depending on which is higher up to RM50 if you fail to make payments before the deadline.

Therefore, it is advised to make full settlement prior to due date as you can enjoy free credit card interest for retail transactions up to 20 days.

Malaysia Credit Card Fraud- Since the implementation of the chip based cards, it’s been harder for fraud to happen.

Quoted from the Star on 15 August 2010,

A staff (Let’s assume he’s Mr. B)from a travel agent was doing a routine credit card transaction of RM17,000 for 5 African men. After close to a month after the transaction, Mr. B got a call from the bank saying that the card was forged. Furthermore, the bank retrieved only RM6,000 and insisted the remaining 11,000 to be paid by Mr. B.

“We are just a travel agency. How would we know if a card was forged?” Mr. B argued.

This is one of the Malaysia credit card fraud that is happening around us.

Malaysia Credit Card Fraud

In 2004, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) statistics on the total amount of credit card fraud was RM68 mil while it fell to RM20 mil in 2006 after the use of chip based cards using Europay MasterCard Visa (EMV) standards.

Based on BNM, the CNP transactions and unauthorised transactions using lost and stolen credit cards amount to 77% of total Malaysia credit card fraud in 2009.

Phishing attacks are also a major issue in credit card fraud where they will acquire consumers’ user names, passwords and credit card details.

Banks and payment networks are fighting back against fraud with Visa CodeSure online payment for Visa Europe and a built-in display window and touch sensitive button debit card for MasterCard Europe.

Even though credit card issuers have taken security measures in preventing fraud, you should still take proper safety measures to avoid from Malaysia credit card fraud.

Here’s what you can do:

Balance Transfer Malaysia - Balance transfer is a transfer of your outstanding amount in a credit card to another credit card company (bank). The bank transfer is designed to allow the consumers to transfer the higher interest balance of your existing credit card into another credit card with lower interest rate.

Who should use Balance Transfer (Malaysia) ?

RM24.4 billion! That’s the amount of credit card debt owed by Malaysians as at end of March 2009. If you are one of the millions contributing a portion of the RM24.4 billion that’s paying an interest of 13.5%-18%, you should consider doing a balance transfer to pay less.

Currently, there are numerous banks that are offering 0% interest free balance transfer.  Most banks offer lower interest for shorter repayment duration but do take note that when you don’t settle the amount in full, then the rate will be back to 18% interest.

Balance Transfer Malaysia Consideration

Credit Card Advantages -Just like most things, there are advantages and disadvantages for having credit cards. The cards had been getting a lot of bad press especially when it comes to people getting into debt.

The credit card can be an asset to your lifestyle but it can turn to be a liability when you lose control of your spendings. For those who have discipline to control their purchases, they can enjoy from credit card rebates, rewards and other benefits.

Credit Card Advantages:

1) Purchasing Power

The creation of the card had made it easier to purchase things on credit without bringing a lot of cash. This can be pretty handy when you are buying overseas where you will not be bringing so much cash on hand.

2) Flexibility

With the credit card, you are given a certain period of time to settle the purchase. For easy payment plan (EPP), this can be up to 3 years making it easy on your pocket and you are able to manage with your cashflow.

3) Credit Line

If you are using the card wisely (making payments on time and in full each month), this will be good for your credit history. Having a good credit history makes it easier for you to apply for  a mortgage, loan, another credit card etc.

4) Emergencies

In terms of emergency,  it can be a very useful tools. There are time where you don’t have cash in hand and you need to money to make payments on a certain agenda, the credit card can be used. These can be for emergencies such as car breaking down, hospital fees, flood etc.

5) Management

With your credit cards, every purchases will be listed on your bills. This make it easier to track your purchase compared to keeping receipts. Furthermore, it is also easier to monitor your spending rather than tracking where you use your cash.

6) Benefits

There are a lot of credit cards that offer benefits now. This can be in the form of reward points, air miles, cash back, additional insurance on purchases or even a free movie ticket. These are often applicable to those who spend a lot with their credit cards in order to see the benefits.

As you can see, the credit card advantages are clear. The reasoning behind the advantages or disadvantages on a credit card is based on how the person uses it. Therefore, it is highly advisable for individuals to fully understand clearly the pros and cons before applying for one.