Visa cards win the majority of Cannex “best value” credit card awards
Visa’s commitment to help its member banks offer a range of competitive payment products saw it and its members win the majority of the card categories in the recent 2007 Sunday Star-Times/Cannex Banking Awards.
Visa credit cards won eight of the nine top spots in the three “best value” credit card categories in the annual awards.
Its products took the top three honours in the Best Value Credit Card for Active Transactors. Visa cards were named second and third in the Best Value Credit Card With Rewards section.
“Healthy competition in theNew Zealand credit card sector is alive and well and to that end it is great to have so many Visa credit card products recognised in this way. Together with New Zealand banks we work very hard to offer Kiwis good value credit card products,” says Iain Jamieson, Visa’s New Zealand Country Manager.
“With many options available, selecting the card that is best for your needs can be difficult. Our advice is to take the time to shop around and see which card works best for your situation. The options just got even better with Visa recently launching debit and pre-paid cards with the same functionality as a credit card but they access your own money.”
The credit card categories, the results and assessment criteria: For all three credit card awards categories, the Sunday Star-Time and Cannex assessed products entered assuming a card balance of $2800.
Best Value Credit Card For Revolvers
TSB Bank. Visa Card
Westpac. Visa/Mastercard
Bankdirect. Visa Classic Low Interest
This category looked at cards for revolvers, people who don’t pay off their cards each month. The cards entered were ranked on the amount that it would cost to pay the balance off, assuming no further purchases were made.
Best Value Credit Cards For Transactors
Bankdirect. Visa Classic Standard
TSB Bank. Visa Card
National Bank. Visa Classic
The Sunday Star-Times and Cannex assessed credit cards entered by annual fees and the number of interest-free days with a limit of $10,000. Interest rates are then taken into account. The newspaper remarked; “These are cards used purely as a payment mechanism, so it’s all about the costs and usability.” Visa cards received all the placings in this category.
Best Value Credit Card With Rewards
BNZ. AMEX Classic Everyday
Westpac. Visa/Mastercard Gold
ASB. Visa/Mastercard Gold
With the complexity of the rewards schemes taken into consideration, cards in this category were ranked by the amount of time it would take to pay off the $2800 balance, including fees, but counted only cards with a rewards scheme and free travel insurance.
The Sunday Star Times/Cannex banking awards seek to show which bank has provided the best value for money products across all the major product categories. This is the second year the awards have been run.
About Visa Visa connects cardholders, merchants and financial institutions through the world’s largest electronic payments network. Visa products allow buyers and sellers to conduct commerce with ease and confidence in both the physical and virtual worlds. Visa is committed to the sustained growth of electronic payment systems to support the needs of all stakeholders and to drive economic growth. Visa is accepted at more than 24 million locations worldwide including one million ATMs. For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com.
About Visa New Zealand Visa is the leading payment brand inNew Zealand with 1.8 million cards on issue and more than 115,000 merchant acceptance locations. For the 12 months ending June 2006, more than NZ$15 billion was spent at point of sale or withdrawn from ATMs in New Zealand using Visa cards. For more information, visit www.visa.co.nz or email nzinfo@visa.com
