Does the possibility of earning rewards get your heart racing? Let’s take a look at the HSBC Red Mastercard. This rewards card offers 4x earning points when you shop and dine, both locally and overseas!
Rewards cards are ideal for spenders who love to redeem merchandise items, cash vouchers, or e-gift certificates.
If you apply from now until February 15, 2020, you will receive Lazada vouchers worth P2,500 as your welcome gift from HSBC. This offer is for new HSBC cardholders only and you must meet the required accumulated spend of P5,000 once you’ve activated and used the card within the promo spend period.
Overall, not a bad welcome gift, right? Especially if you love shopping at Lazada!
Now, let’s take a look at the key features and terms and conditions of this card to see if it’s going to be as ‘rewarding’ as we hope it will be.
HSBC Red Mastercard Terms and Conditions
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How does the HSBC Red Mastercard work?
The HSBC Red Mastercard offers 4x rewards points on your local and overseas shopping and dining transactions at participating merchants and establishments.
This is HSBC’s Accelerated Rewards where domestic and foreign currency transactions can earn you more points.
The maximum spending per month for accumulated purchases and for earning points is P40,000.
The amount on top of the maximum accumulated spend will earn the regular 1 bonus point for every P20 spend.
Aside from shopping and dining, the card is also useful for motorists.
You get a 6% Caltex fuel rebate on your first purchase, and 3% all year round at participating Caltex stations nationwide. This is one of the few credit cards in the Philippines that offers both rewards and rebates.
You have a rebate cap of P20,000 per calendar month. The annual fee is also waived for the first year.
Other features of this card include cash advance, cash instalment plan, card balance transfer, and auto charge for your monthly bills.
HSBC also offers welcome gift promos for new credit cardholders. If you apply now and get approved, you can choose one welcome gift from the table below.
| Welcome Gift | Promo Period | Terms and Conditions |
| Free PHP2,000 Lazada e-voucher | August 16, 2019 to February 15, 2020 | Have accumulated purchases of P5,000 during the promo period |
| Waived annual fees for life | August 16 to
December 31, 2019 |
Apply for an HSBC new credit card via an online channel or HSBC website |
| Free PHP2,500 eGCs of your choice, eGCs for shopping/dining establishments, Ayala Cinema passes, or American Tourister items | August 16, 2019 to February 15, 2020 | Have accumulated purchases of P5,000 during the promo period |
What can you redeem from HSBC Red Mastercard?
The welcome gifts look enticing. Not to mention you can choose between e-giftcards or having your annual fees waived for life.
However, before filling out the online application form, consider checking the rewards catalogue first. Learn about the things to look out for when choosing a rewards card so that you can get more value for your money and your spending.
So what exactly can you get from your reward points? You can redeem Zalora e-Gifts and merchandise items like flat irons, travel mugs, and digital weighing scales.
Here are some of the items for redemption and the total number of points needed to redeem them.
| Reward | Points to Redeem |
| Zalora e-Gift (P200) | 4,000 points |
| Lazada e-Wallet Credit (P200) | 4,000 points |
| Thermos Snack Jar 10 oz. SJ300 | 4,500 points |
| ChildHope Asia Philippines Donation (P250) | 5,000 points |
| World Wildlife Fund (P250) | 5,000 points |
| Dowell Flat Iron – DI-741NS | 6,400 points |
| SM Gift Certificate (P500) | 10,000 points |
| Rustan’s Department Store Gift Certificate (P500) | 10,000 points |
| Thermos Travel Mug 500 ml FlatTop 500 | 10,000 points |
| 1,000 Asia Miles | 10,000 points |
| 1,000 KrisFyler (Singapore Airlines) | 10,000 points |
| 1,500 Mabuhay Miles (PAL) | 15,000 points |
| Imarflex Hair Dryer HD-1600 | 11,300 points |
| Hanabishi Cool Fan HCF-801 | 12,200 points |
| Dowell Oven Toaster DOT-603 | 12,700 points |
| Automatic Centre Gift Certificate (P1,000) | 20,000 points |
| Primary Card Annual Fee Waiver | 30,000 points |
| Omron Digital Weighing Scale HN-289 | 36,600 points |
| Omron Blood Pressure Monitor Arm Type HEM-7120 | 50,000 points |
Check out more items up for redemption at the Red Mastercard Rewards Catalogue.
To summarize, the HSBC Rewards Catalogue offers limited choices. Most of the items that you can redeem are merchandise items or air miles.
The most practical thing to do if you’re a principal cardholder is use your reward points to waive your annual fees.
But it really depends on your spending habits and your priorities. If you can afford to spend more to qualify for the Accelerated Rewards, you can redeem those coveted air miles and have the vacation of a lifetime!
Other options to HSBC Red Mastercard
If you’re not happy with HSBC Red Mastercard Catalogue and its features, you can explore these credit cards that offer up to 10x rewards points when you spend.
Citi Rewards Card (P30 = 1 reward point, 3x rewards point on shopping, dining, and booking flights)
Citi Rewards is ideal for your shopping, dining, and flight booking with Cebu Pacific. You can earn 3x rewards points from these transactions.
You can also use your Citi Points to pay participating merchants and establishments.
Refer to the Rewards Catalogue for the list of rewards associated with this card.
Bank of Commerce Classic Mastercard (P25 = 1 reward point, up to 5X on shopping and dining at participating merchants and establishments)
Bank of Commerce’s entry-level Classic Mastercard offers up to 5x reward points when you shop or dine at participating stores and restaurants using the card.
You earn 1 reward point for every P25 you spend. You can also exchange these points for merchandise items or GetGo points for air miles.
Refer to the Rewards Catalogue for the list of rewards associated with this card.
Citi Grab Credit Card (P30 = 1 Grab Point, up to 10x on Grab Points on all Grab spend* and 3X Citi Grab Points on dining, entertainment, and online subscriptions)
Aside from your welcome gift of 12 FREE rides + P2,500 Grab voucher, you earn up to 10x rewards points from your Grab spend. This promo is valid until June 30, 2020.
In addition, you also earn 3x Citi Grab points when you use it for your dining, online subscriptions, and entertainment purchases.
Refer to the Rewards Catalogue for the list of rewards associated with this card.
So do you think the HSBC Red Mastercard is the rewards card for you?