HDFC Infinia Vs YES First Exclusive Credit Card – Who Wins the Game?

By | July 8, 2017

Based on various articles we have published in the past, such as this and this, we all pretty well know that Yes First Exclusive Card and HDFC Infinia Card are two the best super premium cards in India. If there is one card that one aspires to own, there is very high probability that these two are among them.

Well, due to some recent changes put forward by HDFC Bank, Yes First Exclusive may very well be the best card to be owned on the MasterCard Platform in India. Even, much better than the mighty Infinia. Some may question my analysis but I’ll elaborate a bit more to show a clearer picture.

HDFC Infinia Vs YES First Exclusive Credit Card – A Tough Battle

Let’s make a comparison:

  • Rewards Points:
    • Yes First Exclusive: 2.5% value in return as points
    • HDFC Infinia: 3.3% value in return as point
  • Mark Up fees:
    • Yes First Exclusive: 1.75% (Lowest in India)
    • HDFC Infinia: 2%
  • Interest on Revolving Credit:
    • Yes First Exclusive: 1.2% for Yesbank SB Customers and 1.99% for others
    • HDFC Infinia: 1.99% for everyone.
  • Lounge Facility:
    • Yes First Exclusive: Unlimited to both Primary and Add-On card members through a)Priority Pass (Global) b) MasterCard (India)
    • HDFC Infinia: Unlimited to both Primary and Add-On card member through Priority pass (Global) b)VISA/Mastercard (India) however, this is restricted to primary card holder only.
  •  EMI:
    • Yes First Exclusive: Minimum Threshold of only ₹2500. You continue to get points on EMI facility also. Foreclosure charges- 2%
    • HDFC Infinia: Minimum Threshold on ₹3000 and you don’t get points on EMI. Foreclosure charges- 3%
  • E-Wallet Loading:
    • Yes First Exclusive: You get points for loading e-wallets too. So, all those ardent wallet users, this is your go to card now.
    • HDFC Infinia: You don’t get any points for loading e-wallets now.
  • Insurance Payments:
    • Yes First Exclusive: No upper limit or capping on reward points earned. Plus you get 1000 RPs (worth ₹250) with each new registration.
    • HDFC Infinia: You can only earn a maximum of 2000 RPs for your insurance payments.
  • Eligibility and availability:
    • Yes First Exclusive: You could have owned this card LTF when there was an offer of credit limit matching from any competitor bank credit card if your credit limit was north of 5 lakh. Now you need to have an minimum gross salary of ₹50 Lakh/annum to be eligible to apply. You pay ₹10K as annual/joining fees.
    • HDFC Infinia: You cannot apply for this card straightaway. There is no clear cut guideline. You can be a very HNW individual but still are at the risk of not getting the card as this is an Invite Only Card. No LTF option. You pay ₹10K as annual/joining fees.
  • Some super offers:
    • Yes First Exclusive: 25% Flat off on Bookmyshow Movie tickets upto ₹250 cap/month. (You earn points too on the transaction). Yes First Exclusive: 25% flat off on bill on KFC and Pizza Hut in designated stores.
    • HDFC Infinia: 2X RP’s on dining 5X on bigbasket & 10X on smartbuy are good ones.
  • Fuel Transaction Surcharge Waivers:
    • Yes First Exclusive: Eligible txns: ₹400-₹5000. Upper limit of surcharge waiver is ₹1000/month. Full surcharge will be waived off till it’s less than ₹1000.
    • HDFC Infinia: Eligible txns: ₹400- ₹1 lakh. Upper limit of surcharge waiver is ₹1000/month. There is a catch here. Max limit of surcharge waiver is only 1% of the transaction now. You may be charged anywhere between 1% to 2.5% based on what petrol pump and bank tie up is there. But you will be reversed a maximum of only 1%.
  • Redemption Capabilities:
  • The Yes First Exclusive: Huge redemption option including various gift cards like Amazon, Cleartrip, Shopper Stop, West side and the list is huge. This helps you to redeem your points for literally anything. You can even gift these vouchers to friends/relatives.
  • HDFC Infinia: Redemption options are relatively restricted only to Flights, Movies, Recharge etc, that too only at their own redemption site. 

I hope this exhaustive comparison will show that Yes First Exclusive Card is now really having a lot of advantage over HDFC Infinia Credit Card now. And the best thing is that those who have got this Yes First Exclusive Card LTF don’t have any strings attached and can very well stop thinking about chasing an Infinia now.

    Though, there maybe cases where Infinia wins the battle by big numbers. For eg., if you spend a lot on their frequent promos like 2X/5X/10X Reward Points, you end up saving a lot by end of the day. Hence, to decidewhich one to go for, always you need to check what benefit you’re looking for. For ex, if its priority pass that you’re chasing, Yes First Exclusive can get you easily compared to Infinia as its quite tough to get approved.

    What do you think? Do agree to our views? Do you think, Infinia still holds any value against Yes First Exclusive?

    128 thoughts on “HDFC Infinia Vs YES First Exclusive Credit Card – Who Wins the Game?

    1. Abhishek Singh

      Hi Sid,

      I Own HDFC Diner Black card, based on your review I have applied and received the card. My only purpose was Lounge access free for all family with minimum annul fee.

      Now HDFC customer care telling that add on card members are not eligible for Lounge Access, only primary holder is eligible. Customer care also told that, minimum salary eligibility for Infinia is 4 Lakh/ month or based on usage they will upgrade.

      Also my credit limit is only 4 Lakh, not that 10 Lakh which you have mentioned.

      Can you put some more light to it.

      Regards

      Reply
      1. Siddharth

        A simple answer is, you have nothing to worry.
        (as long as they didn’t change the add-on lounge benefit in past 1 month)

        Cust. care is always clueless and hence don’t take their word!

        Reply
        1. Abhishek Singh

          Dear Sid,

          Thanks for your prompt revert.

          As I have noticed in Diner, all the cards whether primary or add on, all having same card numbers, even same cvv, same expiry just names are different.

          And I too have SBI card, where add on card number is different from primary.

          Why is it so? Suppose I loose 1 card, I have to block all cards.

          Regards

          Reply
          1. Siddharth

            Yes, HDFC cards work that way. However, Add-on cards are identified through inbuilt chip.
            Yes, you’ll need to replace all of them in such cases.

            Reply
          2. Rockstar

            Dear Abhishek,
            I also have HDFC Dinners black and it’s a gr8 card cos it has 10X reward points for partner merchant which is not even for INFINIA , but major disadvantage is unlimited free lounge access only for Primary card holder and not for add on card member, for unlimited free lounge access for add on card member its INFINIA OR YES FIRST EXCLUSIVE.
            and I m very lucky that bank has upgraded me to YES FIRST EXCLUSIVE card only within 2 months of usage .and that ALSO LTF.

            Rest all details u guys have done a gr8 job.

            Reply
            1. Sharathkumar Anbu

              Upgrade to Yes first exclusive in 2 months?

              That’s really great. How was your spends in those 2 months and do you have any other relationship with bank?

            2. Ankit Malhotra

              Hi Rockstar,

              Could you tell me your average spends for 2 months for the upgrade to happen to Yes Exclusive on LTF.

            3. Rockstar

              Dear Sharath Kumar and Ankit,
              To my surprise I don’t have any special YB account only simple savings account and also I didn’t spend much on card but may be they must have seen my credit score and may be sheer luck , but still its ai difficult to believe cos reading all you guys post I thought I won’t get The card, but now I am upgraded only awaiting for the card to deliver to me.

              Sometimes unbelievable things happen so keep dreaming and all the best for all your cards.

              Special thanks to Sid who had been plethora of information

              Rockstar

      2. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Just don’t worry about what the customer care guys are telling. They are clueless. You go and swipe your primary and add-on card, you will be granted two separate access. I have tried it with Diners Rewardz/Premium/Black. All three of them. I’ll suggest not to upgrade or change from Diners Black to Infinia as you will lose the 10X earning capability. No other card in the market gives that kind of 33.33% return. Period.

        Reply
        1. sachin gupta

          HDFC bank will not charge me if i swipe diners premium add on card?

          Reply
          1. Abhishek Roy Post author

            No. The moment they insert your chip card, it will show whether you have free lounge visits or not. Ask them to check that for you. If it is, then they will charge you ₹2 and give you free access.

            Reply
        2. Rockstar

          Dear Ankit and Sharathkumar you will be surprise to hear that neither I have a premium account in yesbank I just have a simple saving zero balance account nor I spend huge amount on card, May be bank must have seen my credit score and my excellent payment records which. Might have impress them but for me its sheer luck and still it looks like a dream for me and that also LTF. and I didn’t wanna spend huge joining fee on infinia card now I have best combination of card DINNERS BLACK AND YES FIRST EXCLUSIVE.

          But any way all the best to you guys.

          With LOL
          Rockstar

          Reply
    2. Prashant Gupta

      Diners club black should also be added to comparison. It also has unlimited lounge access and 1 on 1 movie offer.

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Diners Club Cards at least for now CANNOT be compared with any other cards. Just because of the generous 10X reward system, it’ll blow away all the cards. If you have a Diners Black, you don’t have to worry much. However, what I do is that I keep a back up card with me apart from the Black which in my case is the Yes First Exclusive Card.

        Reply
    3. Biby

      This is kind of a biased review. Having Yes Exclusive as LTF card was a great opportunity. No doubt. But Infinia is superior compared to Yes Exclusive if we have to pay the fees.

      There are many points Abhishek missed:
      *Lounges: Infinia also have acess to domestic lounges through visa infinite program / master card program.
      *max limit on 2000Rp for insurance payment is “per transaction”. Such means for approx 60k rupees. Its a fair amount.
      *Super offers: in bookmyshow there is visa infinite offer(20%). Then there are 2x offer for dining. Many other discount offers could be found on smartbuy offer page. 5x(eg. Bigbasket) & 10x (smartbuy)offers happens time to time.

      Sid:I think you should add these points in main article so that readers are not mislead.

      So in short you cannot declare Yes Exclusive as a winner(Atleast the paid variant)

      Reply
      1. Siddharth

        Sure, i just did it. 2X/5X/10X does make a big difference.
        And who wins is very much dependent on what benefit we look for. Its more like the never ending debate of – Android Vs Apple 🙂

        Reply
      2. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Hello Biby,
        I see you have made some points. While I appreciate that, I’ll counter you on few.
        1. Lounges: Agreed, I missed that Infinia does have access to lounges even through the VISA Infinite and Mastercard program, however there is a catch. First, the program is only for primary card holder and second, you have got to have the Mastercard variant if you want to have maximum lounge coverage. That is not the case with Yes First Exclusive as it ONLY offers Mastercards. Nevertheless, lounge visits is not a concern since the priority pass will suffice for most.
        2. Insurance Capping of 2000 RPs: 60K is a fair amount? Well, people who have HDFC Infinia in most cases are Super HNW individuals with tremendous spending capacity. Now usually insurance payments are annual in most cases if not all and for them, usually 60K will always fall short. So it is always better to go with a card that doesn’t have such restrictions.
        3. Bookmyshow: 20% off through VISA Infinite Program. Well, there are a LOT of restrictions. When I say a lot, I mean it. There is a reason why I didn’t include this.
        a) Can be availed only on weekends
        b) There is a quota. That is they will cater only first come first serve basis. So, you might not be able to avail.
        c) The 20% discount is limited to only one transaction a month for movie and 1 for non-movie.
        d) You get one transaction for all your cards (Primary and Add-On combined). In Yes First Exclusive Card, add-on card is treated as a separate card and has a separate ₹250 capping. You can transact any number of times till you reach ₹250 monthly limit. We both know that there are very few movie theaters that have such high price tickets that you’ll be able to redeem the entire ₹300 as 20% discount in a single transaction. For that to happen, the ticket price has to be ₹1500. I am sure you can watch a movie at a lot less.
        10X offer has NEVER happened before for HDFC Cards except Diners. So this is a first. Besides, even if this will remain for Diners, it’ll sure go soon for Infinia and other cards.

        VERDICT: What I wrote was based on all the facts that I have placed before. Everyone is entitled to have an opinion. You too. So, if you still see greater value in HDFC Infinia, no one is stopping you to use that. Our purpose here on this platform is to share our knowledge and help each other. We all learn from each other, but we never give biased opinions. In future, if things change, rest assured that you’ll see an article coming up for that too. Peace!!!!

        Reply
    4. Ket

      You can perhaps add Axis Bank Reserve to this list (at your discretion).

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Axisbank Reserve Credit Card is more of a luxury credit card. It can be compared to some extent with Citibank Prestige Credit Card. However, the joining and renewal fees of Axisbank Reserve Card is very high at ₹30K/annum. Besides, the card has a very lousy reward scheme where in they only provide 1% in return as points. So, no, this card cannot be compared with the likes of HDFC Infinia and Yes First Exclusive Credit Card.

        Reply
    5. Ankur Mittal

      I have both yes first exclusive and Infinia card. The benefit for having yes first card is that if you do foreign transactions, besides the markup charges, mastercard gives better conversion rate. I have tested it myself and the conversion rate for mastercard was .25% better.

      Also with infinia card 3.3% reward points value is only if we spend on hotel, flights, recharge on there site, while incase of yes bank we can get Amazon vouchers and can use it to literally spend on anything which is a huge plus.

      Regards,
      Ankur

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Yes, even I have witnessed this. I have tested it on IndusInd Visa Signature Debit Card and Yes First Exclusive Card. I have found the MasterCard to give a better conversion rates. However the difference is minimal. And yes, this point gives a whole different perspective. I think I’ll add it to the post, that the Yes First Exclusive points can be redeemed against Amazon vouchers too. So this lets you buy almost anything. Whereas the redemption choices on Infinia are restricted.

        Reply
      2. Vivek

        Dear Ankur,
        Can you share how you got approved for Infinia?
        Thanks in advance!

        Reply
        1. Ankur Mittal

          Vivek, my company’s account is with HDFC 🙂 so it wasn’t a problem to get both infinia and Diners Black

          Reply
          1. Vivek

            Both.. Marvelous. With imperia ac or relationship value much above its eligibility criteria?

            Reply
      3. Sahil

        I have the Infinia too and would like to opt for the Yes First Exclusive as my secondary card. Could you let me know what was the process you went through for Yes Bank? Do you have to pay the 10k annual fee and did they match or exceed your Infinia limits?

        Reply
      4. MANOJ SINGLA

        Absolutely correct. Buying Amazon eGV wd Yes rewards is comfortable and best option.

        Reply
    6. Prafull

      I have yes first preferred LTF credit card? Is there a way to upgrade LTF YES first Exclusive card?
      Similarly i have LTF Diners Premium card, can i convert to LTF Diners Black card?
      I am not interested to pay annual charges or joining fees.

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        I don’t think you can convert Diners Premium to Diners Black for free. Even we had to pay fees. For Yes preferred to Yes Exclusive, it’s difficult to say. You have to talk to them and see if they will upgrade or not for free.

        Reply
    7. Rahul Shekhar

      I see that you have mentioned that Yes Bank gives reward points for loading wallets. What are some other cards that give the same?

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        All cards from other banks that have point system of rewards except HDFC Credit Cards

        Reply
          1. Amex Guy

            Citi does. My miles at the end of the month are calculated on total bill generated, and a fair amount(10-15%) is wallet recharges.

            Reply
      2. MANOJ SINGLA

        IndusInd Pinnacle gives 2.5% points which can be adjusted in next bill.

        Reply
    8. Gaurav

      Will I be able to get 10x rewards if I load the balance in Amazon Pay. I have hdfc diners premium card. Please advice.

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        After the recent changes I’m a bit sceptical. But you can give it a try and let us know.

        Reply
      2. KETAN CHAUDHARY

        I think yes, I have used twice and recently added money before 10 days and I have got points…

        Reply
    9. nitesh sharma

      Isn’t Infinia the clear winner given the fact you earn 3.3% on every spend vs. 2.5% in yes. I believe other points are not as big as this maybe.

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        It is upto you. It is you who has to decide. Opinions will vary. For me, I see more value in Yes First than Infinia.

        Reply
      2. Arjun Jayasimha

        My take on the issue:

        1. Infinia’s 3.3% reward rate has to be viewed in the context of the annual fee for the card. If the amount you spend on Infinia earns you enough through additional reward points (3.3% – 2.5%) to offset Infinia’s annual fee vis-a-vis Exclusive’s lifetime free, then please go for it as Abhishek said.

        2. Yes First Exclusive’s reward rate of 2.5% comes with no strings attached. It can be redeemed for common retail vouchers at that rate. Infinia has a 3.3% reward rate only for redemption on their website.

        3. Many of us split our spend across multiple cards. For example, movie tickets on 1 card, fuel on the other, dining on a 3rd, retail therapy on the 4th, 4K monthly on Amex etc. In this case, the spend on just 1 card (infinia) may not be high enough for the reward rate to offset the high annual fee which never gets waived.

        My vote goes for Yes First Exclusive. It is almost too good to be true actually.

        Reply
    10. Yogesh Goel

      I have the infinia but now i think i should try and get the YES First Exclusive Credit Card…seems the yes bank are getting serious with their cards and whereas the HDFC people r getting rigid day by day…HDFC doesn’t seem to be too much interested with cards nowadays….before everything used to be so generous with them…now so many limitations and rules one have to think twice….

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Agreed. You already have the Infinia. I don’t think it’ll be a problem getting Yes First for you. Please consider sharing the way in which you got Infinia. Cheers

        Reply
        1. Sidak

          Abhishek, You get Infinia is through invite only I think. I am an imperia account holder in HDFC. You need to ask your relationship manager and if eligible (their own criteria, Idk what is the basis) then you get it.
          Infinia has no predefined set limit. It varies case to case. I got 8L limit but after months of usage they said they can upgrade it if I wished..

          Reply
    11. Majumdar

      While comparing Infinia to YEX, we should keep in mind the frequent 5X/2X campaigns on HDFC cards. If possible you should have both.

      Regards

      Reply
    12. Anonymous

      For a 7.5 lakh spend (which is reasonably high) the Preferred card gives better value than the Exclusive card. You get Rs. 20,000 in the Preferred card while you only get around Rs. 18,750 in the Exclusive one (assuming both cards are LTF). The milestone bonus threshold in the Exclusive card is too high, which makes it less beneficial. Strange.

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        This anonymous comment we are allowing to post just to let the readers know that please don’t use anonymous and junk emails to post comments here. Else those comments will not be approved. Kindly comply. Use your name and any email so that readers know who you are. We are like a small family here sharing our knowledge and experience on this platform. 🙂

        Reply
    13. Batul

      Hi Siddharth!

      What about SBI Elite vs Yes First Exclusive? or SBI Elite vs Yest Frist Prefered ?

      Reply
    14. Vikram

      I need some clarification related to the article and some comments in here. I see that it’s mentioned that the Yes First Exclusive provides 2.5% returns unconditionally while for the HDFC Infinia the 3.3% is conditional. What exactly does it mean? I have neither cards actually. I have the younger siblings of both these cards, the Yes First Preferred and the HDFC Diners Club Black. I’ve got more out of my Diners Black card than I’ve got out of all the other cards I’ve ever held or still hold in my life. 🙂

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Conditionally means, HDFC gives you reward points only if it isn’t wallet recharges. Plus there is cap on Insurance Premium Payment. At the same time, you don’t earn a dime if you change your expenses to any form of EMIs. That way you have to pay for all things in full. You can never take the benefit of services like “No Cost EMI”. With Yes First Exclusive or any Yesbank Credit Cards, there isn’t any such conditions as such. I might be wrong if they have changed the rules now but that was the case when this article was being penned down.

        Reply
        1. Vikram

          Oh okay, I got it. I thought that the term “conditionally” applied during redemption and didn’t realize it was actually during gathering reward points itself. Yes Bank has a lot of great offers that sound unbelievable. But I’m scared that all this may be just to build a credit card customer base initially and maybe removed later on. Lets wait and see. Hope they prove me wrong. 🙂

          Reply
          1. Amex Guy

            That will happen with every card. Cards usually have a goal of profitability in 2-4 years window. As they approach that window, all benefits except the sustainable ones (your bank only earns around 1-1.2% off a transaction, rest goes to Visa/MC) go away.

            Reply
    15. Aman

      Hi sid

      Got news that the upgrade software would be live from 25th September and first upgraded cards would be processed by 10th October for those who are eligible and apply for it.

      Could you please check and confirm if the same is true ?

      Reply
      1. Siddharth

        We got to wait to find if its so. You can still try for upgrade if its 6 months old.

        Reply
    16. Aman

      Hi Sid

      Finally got the news that the upgrade software is ready. My upgrade was processed to Exclusive. Though I am yet to get the card, I can see 2 Credit cards in my netbanking. The old one’s status is transfer and the new one is Exclusive.

      Hope you all too get the good news soon.

      PS. Mine is LTF. I have also been told that that 100% reward points will be transfered but currently they appear with the old card’s details. So I’ll have to wait a bit I guess. Preferred card currently has an issue with points redemption which are not being processed.

      Best of luck everyone.

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        What upgrade are we talking here about? Can you please elaborate the whole matter for all readers?

        Reply
        1. Aman

          Upgraded credit card from YES Preferred to YES Exclusive for my entire family. All LTF.

          Reply
          1. Abhishek Roy Post author

            That’s awesome. Please care to share the whole process eligibility criteria, whom to contact, time period and all the nit bits. Sharing is caring. 🙂

            Reply
            1. Aman

              Honest answer.
              1. The relationship value (read bank balances over 5 years) with Yes Bank.
              2. Plus really good ITRs to support that .
              3. Plus constant follow up.

              My family was issued pre approved preferred CCs on the basis of the relationship LTF last year in Dec. (Some of us actually didn’t use CCs earlier and I kind of enquired post Demonitisation. Got a pleasant surprise that we were already pre approved preferred LTF.)

              After I read Sid’s blog in March this year, I decided to see if it was possible to upgraded to exclusive. I was told (no less than by the country head in CCs) that there was no upgrade software in place yet and was assured that it will be done the moment it is technically possible.

              So I asked for a limit increase in June and they obliged on the basis of ITRs. I was also told that in Aug, upgrade software may be ready. Then for Septembe, then October and finally it was done yesterday (no docs given this time) for all my family members LTF. (Was told your upgrade is being done as a special case but banks are known to say this to please customers).

              Can see the card in my netbanking but yet to get the physical card.

              The best guy for this is your RM. He will know how to get it done.

              Hope you all too get an exclusive card soon.

      2. Siddharth

        Aman,

        Congrats on that!

        The major drawback i see is, whether we’ll get those 2x/3x/5x/10x Bonus points to new card or not! Most banks don’t do that and so i’m hesitant to ask for upgrade.

        Reply
        1. Aman

          Not sure about the 2x/10x part but its ok. I’d actually wanted this since more than 6 months back so I’ll take the upgarade over the bonus points.

          Reply
    17. varun

      Hi Aman,

      How did you proceeded for an upgrade from Yes Preferred to Exclusive. Did you called the phone banking or done through online website. Can you share the details so that is helpful for fellow reader.
      What are the additional document they require for an upgrade.
      I see that salary limit required is 50 lacs. Probably I am not in that range yet. But I have credit card with limit 8.5 lacs. Will the statement of these be sufficient for an upgrade. I got yes preferred in month of June,17 so should i wait for 6 months to complete or apply now.

      Reply
      1. Aman

        Hi Varun

        I am not sure about the rules in place for upgrade. (Do wait 6 months form card issue date as Abhishek has advised)

        The best person to advise you is your own Yes First RM. He will know (the right persons & method for your geography) whether you meet the eligibility criteria or not and how to proceed.

        Again it will depend on the kind of relationship you have with the bank. We had both the income and the bank balances meeting their criteria I guess.

        Reply
    18. Manav Singh

      Hi,
      On Yes Bank’s website, one place eligibility written as Gross Monthly Income as 3.2 Lacs. Other place its Annual Gross as 50 Lacs.

      Some one with higher variable component ( but lower monthly gross salary ) — how will the Bank take that case?

      Any ideas?

      Regards

      Reply
    19. Soumya

      Hi,

      Please suggest me a way to get either one of the below mentioned cards for life time free. Currently I have HDFC regalia credit card with life time free offer.

      SBI Prime Credit card
      YES bank exclusive credit card
      HDFC Infinia Credit card

      Reply
      1. Arjun

        Yes exclusive is free if you have savings account with them and have 8 l credit limit on any other card or have 36 lakhs salary

        Reply
        1. Narinder Pal

          Does this means if I have this card and I open an account, it can be converted in to LTF card??

          Reply
          1. Arjun

            Its the reverse- get the account first maintain a good balance YBL will call you with a credit card offer 😉

            Reply
    20. Aman

      Hi all

      Finally got the cards. They come in beautiful boxes!!!

      PS. Earlier reward points 100% transfered to new card and will be available for redemption after 1st statement as they are put under earned in current cycle. Not sure about all the bonus points and cashbacks as they are due in the future. Will update you about the same sid.

      I don’t understand why YES bank cc are without embossing while debit cards are beautiful and with embossing.

      Guess they dont want you to be applying for other cards, on card on card basis, using yes bank CC.

      Reply
      1. Siddharth

        Congrats!

        I think its more of a lack in temporary technical infrastructure. Hope they issue embossed cards soon.

        Reply
        1. Amex Guy

          Don’t think so. New Amex Plats are flat. Citi went flat as well. Flat is the future!

          Reply
          1. Abhishek Roy Post author

            Flats do save a lot of space. But it should be done the right way. A premium card ought to give an owner a smile should he/she look at it everytime.

            Reply
            1. Amex Guy

              Agreed. They should put the numbers on the back, maybe explore metal card options for at least the top tier cards. But embossing has to go, it only spoils the card design overall. We kind of don’t notice it until we hold a rightly done flat card.

              For me, at the minimum:

              Nomal printed numbers on front + Very high quality background = win
              Metal + Flat = win
              Numbers on back + Normal background = win

              Although, ideally, I’d want all three. 🙂

              I’ve noticed flat cards look much classier when matter than glossy. But that’s subjective I believe. But since I’ve gotten my replacement Amex Plat flat and Prestige as flat, I literally cringe at embossed cards. You get used to it in a good way, especially if the flat card is done in a subtle way (which Yes is not). I saw my cousin’s Prime card the other day and could not help but point out how an amazing background is ruined by embossed numbers.

            2. Abhishek Roy Post author

              Exactly my point. SBI Prime has one of the best backgrounds I have seen among other Indian CC. I guess Yesbank for sure will revamp and go for a better design cards in near future. For now at least they should upgrade the UI of their medieval looking Netbanking. They have a lot of catching up to do.

      2. Amex Guy

        Aman, I actually prefer flat ones. I carry over 12 cards (not all credit/debit) and lack of embossing really helps in making wallet thinner. I just wish Indian banks start doing this right start writing number at the back of the cards it looks refreshingly clean in the front. Most US banks are doing it this way.

        Typically banks ask their top customers when making such changes, and most of those carry 10s of cards so they mostly choose flat. I mean, if you have an Infinia/Ultima/Centurion, you don’t need no embossing to compensate.

        Reply
        1. AS

          Embossing on card was there to serve a purpose which no longer exists, so all banks will stop issuing embossed cards. It had nothing to do with visuals.

          Reply
    21. Pawan

      Nope all cards are moving to this slowly.
      my citi premier miles newly issued is also not embossed.

      Reply
      1. HP

        Same with ICICI amex cobranded fuel card. El cheapo plastic quality and no raised embossing. The only reason I hold this is because of the fuel benefits and 8 free lounge access. However, I noticed that AMEX doesn’t cut corners in this regard!

        Reply
    22. Aman

      Sid

      Just an update from the the bonuses after upgrade

      On 31st October

      1. Got Amazon vouchers for spend based targets in July

      2. Got bonus reward points on the old card for online spends 2x offer from August. Have emailed to yesfirstcc to transfer these to my upgraded exclusive card. Earlier points already transferred.

      3. 1% Cashback upto Rs. 1000 on international spends in July /August due on 31st October but not received. Have emailed for this too.

      Will update you when I know more.

      Reply
      1. Aman

        Hi

        Just giving a status update.

        1. Reward points transfered on statement generation and ready to be redeemed.

        2. Bonus points credited on 31st October 2017.

        3. 1% cashback on international spends not received.
        Somehow cusromer care is saying there is no international spends in your card. Have send them earlier (preferred) card statement. Think they are checking for spends on the upgraded (exclusive) card which obviously was not even issued by then !!!. Think I will escalate. Let’s see what happens.

        Reply
        1. Siddharth

          Aman,
          Do you mean Bonus Points for spends on preferred card is credited properly to Exclusive card?

          Reply
          1. Aman

            Yes Sid

            First iy was credited to the preferred card and then transfered to the exclusive before statement date. After statement was generated I was able to redeem all my points for Amazon GVs which is quite a lot and are on the way to be delivered. 🙂

            Reply
    23. Puneet

      Very nice article and following discussions, Abhishek!
      Less than 24 hours ago I asked for my Amex Platinum travel card to be ceased due their refusal to reverse the annual charges (I was promised a spend based reversal at the time of signing up for the card ~6 years ago).
      I really enjoyed using the card because of the 50% points conversion ratio for select airlines.

      While I have cancelled Amex, I’ve signed for the HDFC Infinia card – I expect it to be delivered in the next 3 days.
      I think an important point that has not been included in this discussion is the Golf benefits the infinia card provides. Not only do you get access to some top golf courses at no cost, there is also Golf training included once every 4 days at no cost – you don’t even have to carry clubs or golf balls.

      Moreover, there is no joining fee and no annual fees for the first year. Second year on, there is a waiver on annual fees based on spending (upwards of 8L required).

      If only HDFC allowed points redemption on Amazon, I think it’ll become unbeatable – what do you think?

      Reply
    24. Balpreet Singh

      Puneet,

      If you can elaborate more on Golf Benefits for all of us. I have never used it, but would wanna try.
      I have Diners Black / Yes First Exclusive CC

      Questions in my mind are:

      1) Is it totally free? If not what other charges do we need to pay
      2) I had read about equipment rental / caddy charge / buggy charge etc. Do we need to pay for those

      Anything else you can share that will help us utilize these benefits

      Regards,

      Balpreet

      Reply
    25. Manav Singh

      Aman,

      Reading thru your comments.. Great that You got the upgrade ( Preferred to Exclusive).

      I have been trying but still not succeeded. In my case, I feel RM & BM are not pushing my case enough.

      Any thoughts on how strict they are on criteria of 3.2 Lacs per month salary?
      I have a Diners Black with a 8L limit. Will that help me in any case?

      Regards,

      Manav

      Reply
      1. Gkcards

        Yes, try upgrading to exclusive based on other card limit. I got YFE free for life based on other card limit 8+

        Reply
    26. Mouli

      Aman,

      Plz let us know on how you got the upgrade your yes first card to Exclusive.
      How long you held yes first and what was the limit and how you were spending per month in yes first card ?

      Thanks

      Reply
      1. Aman

        Hi Mouli

        Have already answered earlier.

        It’s the Relationship value and years of Banking. No link to the spends on the cards. The thing is eligibility wise we already qualified for Exclusive but had been issued Preferred.

        If you have any other query, please let me know.

        Reply
    27. Vivek

      Hi for someone like me who is a Regalia, SBI Elite and Yes First Preferred user, how to i approach a Yes bank RM for upgrade to Exclusive, given a fact that i dont have a YES bank account

      Reply
    28. Vivek

      Hi for someone like me who is a Regalia, SBI Elite and Yes First Preferred user, how to i approach a Yes bank RM for upgrade to Exclusive, given a fact that i dont have a YES bank account..

      Reply
    29. Praveen Perumalla

      “Yes First Exclusive: 25% flat off on bill on KFC and Pizza Hut in designated stores.”

      Abhishek – is this still valid? What is the source?

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Probably it has been removed. I’m not sure. It was available for more than 5 months from when I wrote the post.

        Reply
    30. Shailesh Jani

      If we are NOT satisfied with any of the card e.g. Yes first and HDFc infinia and we want to discontinue it than what is the procedure and penalty if any?

      Reply
    31. Jeet

      I remember someone had mentioned that Infinia they will waive the fees for Infinia if you set up Smartpay or add-on card or something like that. Can someone please share some light on this?

      Reply
      1. HTC Fan

        For infinia reversal is only possible if you spend above 8L in the yearly cycle. Else fees would be charged but you get 10000 reward points for the fee paid.

        Reply
    32. Shaz

      Hi Siddharth and Abhishek, I am new to your forum but I’m very impressed with the work you guys are doing. I have always felt we in India really needed someone passionate about credit cards who could comment on it like the Points Guy or Credit Shifu in the US. I believe the Indian Card industry is still at a nascent stage and has a lot of room to mature compared to the US market. I am also a credit card freak just like you holding multiple premium credit cards and would love to give you my input whenever possible. In this particular article Abhishek has really done an in depth analysis of both these cards.
      Regarding the Infinia, since I hold one, I would like to mention that this card also has the NPSL feature which is excellent. Based on your usage and payment pattern they can increase your credit limit by more than 50%. This is called the temporary limit enhancement which lasts for 30 days, after which your limit goes back to what it used to be earlier. All you need to do is inform the bank that you need it and it’s done in 2 to 3 working days. You can repeat this process many times during the course of the year depending on how good your relationship is with the bank. I found this a rather interesting feature pretty similar to Amex Plat Charge Card. Other banks like IndusInd which sources Indulge Card do have a NPSL feature but they don’t stretch more than 25 to 30% of your base credit limit. I know this since I have an Indulge Card too.

      Reply
      1. Abhishek Roy Post author

        Thanks for the kind words. Welcome to our little family. We all shall be benefitted on this forum exchanging our little knowledge with each other. In the end, we just want that the credit cards that you own should work for you and not for the bank. Thanks for pointing out the NPSL feature. I do think NPSL is a big feature that cards like Infinia/Amex Platinum/Indulge has that Yes First Exclusive doesn’t have.

        Reply
        1. Shaz

          Thanks Abhishek. Look forward to many more articles from you both on Super Premium Credit Cards.

          Reply
    33. Agrim

      Great forum. Thanks for the help.
      I have a hdfc regalia limit 2.4 lac and itr criteria also fulfilled. Should I apply for diners black or infinia.
      10x points are there in infinia also or only diners black
      Thanks

      Reply
      1. Aman

        You could apply for Infinia but chances of getting is low. I held Regalia for 6 Years and 500k for 2 years before getting upgrade to Infinia (I had to ask). DCB is said to be easier to get.

        Reply
    34. Mukund Nair

      Hi Can someone give a view on if the Yes Exclusive if a Car Loan is with Yes Bank? Does that count as a relationship value?

      Reply
    35. Yug

      I just got an sms for LTF Yes Exclusive card upgrade. I’ve been using Preferred card for less than a year, but good track record. Looks like they don’t offer Amazon vouchers anymore? I don’t find them in credit cards catalogues. That’s a let down, is it?

      I’ve Amex platinum travel card too, but they never waive off annual fee. After reaching my spend limits, accumulating rewards, I don’t use that card anymore. Don’t see any benefit in doing so… I’ve been looking for one single card for the best benefits, I’ve a possibility of getting infinia too. I’m not sure which one gets me better rewards. Seems like Yes Exclusive still a winner even if I get rid of Amex plat travel card? No, I don’t want to pay annual fees.

      Reply
      1. nitin agarwal

        Hi Yug,
        for my Plat Travel, i also thought that i would let it go after frst year free period, but that TAJ coupon at 4 lakh spend is too good to resist and overall reward rate is pretty decent even if you consider annual fee. you can pay through your points at a lower rate if you call their CC.
        after 4 lakh spend, I use my YFE and axis vistara infinite…YFE is life time free and Vistara business class tickets is some experience you can have at a very lower rate than usual through this card.

        Reply
    36. Anoop E S

      Being a DCB holder for almost 3 years, I was on the verge of applying for Infinia by sending forms to chennai just for unlimited priority pass.

      Had got LTF YFP 6 months back on card on card basis with a small limit of 80K. Was never expecting an upgrade since the limit provided was very small. Had done 2 FCY transactions, 2 Autopays, some small airline transactions (like spice max, option town etc) and auto wallet uploads. Got offer to upgrade to LTF YFE last week and happily opted for it. Got the upgraded card and PP two days back although the limit is the same 80K.

      So no plan to apply for Infinia now, especially since DCB is adding more features.

      Reply
      1. Himanshu Kainth

        Anoop ES,

        Very surprised to see you got an upgrade to YEE from YFP with 80K limit. I escalated quite a few times regarding the card upgrade. Once they have approved the card, the moment I shared my ITR it again downgraded to YFP. I can see on yes mobile app. Later was told that we need a minimum of 2L Credit limit on preferred to upgrade to exclusive.

        Also how the system got triggered with this type of spend.

        Reply
        1. Anoop E S

          Seriously I was also surprised. Although I wanted to go for YFE from beginning, I didn’t had any other CC with 8 lakh limit with 50% balance available 6 months back. So I had to settle for YFP and got it on card to card basis on ICICI Jet Visa Saphiro.

          After seeing your comments, I checked my transactions for the last 6 months again. I had mentioned that I had done 2 FCY transactions, 2 Autopays, some small airline transactions (like spice max, option town etc) and auto wallet uploads. Had used this card for buying seats in AIr India and for paying the Rs.500 charges for the complimentary Business class ticket from Axis Vistara Infinite card. Apart from that some spends in Swiggy, Book my Show, supermarkets etc which is considered to be normal spends.

          I feel that the 2 FCY transactions which was converted into EMI later and registering for 2 bill auto payments might have triggered the upgrade.

          Reply
        2. Sharathkumar Anbu

          Hi Himanshu,

          I recently got upgrade from YFP to Yes first exclusive in 4 months with a limit of 50K. They gave 50K limit against my 5L DCB when I applied. I have done few forex transactions and online shopping, etc.. then got the upgrade message automatically.

          What do you mean by once you shared the ITR, they downgraded to YFP? Did you mean you got YFE earlier and when you applied for limit enhancement by sending ITR, did they downgrade you to YFP?

          Reply
          1. SG

            I got my YFP 3 months back basis my payslip with 3 lakhs limit. No usage yet as my spends are on DCB / SCB Ultimate. I do really want the YFE LTF only for unlimited PP. Basis your advise, I have just registered two autopay for mobile payments and want to do forex trx as well. What is the best way to make small forex trx without travelling? 🙂 Paypal or something of that sorts? I’ve never used it before. Any recommendations?

            Thanks

            Reply
            1. Arun

              Order something from AliExpress if you want to do small value forex transactions

    37. Akash

      Wow I have a limit of only 1.25L on my Yes Premia credit card, which is the lowest among all by cards. But reading the comment’s here it looks like I got lucky!. Seriously! only 80k limit on a top end card like YFE!?. Why do Yes bank give such pathetic limits!?

      Reply
      1. Anoop E S

        it may be due to the fact that I applied card on card basis and they didn’t had any chance to look at my salary slip or ITR.

        At the time of upgrading to YFE, I asked CC executive about limit increase. He said it will trigger automatically (just like the card upgrade) and no need to apply for it separately.

        This was the lowest limit among the cards I hold. Amex had given me Jet Platinum card with 100k limit as I was Jet Platinum. When Jet collapsed, they issued me Amex travel Platinum card with 75K limit, allowing me to retain the Jet Card. Again, Amex also didn’t bother to ask for my salary slips or ITR till now.

        Reply
    38. Captain Bishuddha Bharatiya

      I called customer care for my regular query which is LE and upgrade. This time they said I have upgrade offer from Edge card to Premia even though I have completed only 4 months. I accepted it.
      I was never informed about the offer. So guys I recommend everyone to keep calling customer care if you want LE and upgrade.

      Reply
      1. Jambui

        @captain even i never received any intimation. Called cust care to ask for LE (50k) he said no LE but yfp to yfe upgrade is available. Took it immediately. After 3 months limit enhanced to 62.5k and still there. Though i have stop bothering them now as after dcb i use it for food bills only, now that is also taken by dcb with double rewards.

        Reply
    39. Varun

      Yes even mine YES Exclusive limit is 3.4 lacs which is lowest of all cards I hold. Infinia has limit of 12 lacs.

      Reply
    40. Sharathkumar Anbu

      Any idea on how to increase credit limit with Yes bank? Paltry limit of 50K for YFE is too bad.

      Reply
      1. Ramesh Kumar

        They’ll provide auto LE, after completing 9 months. I got LE of 25% twice on 9th and 12th month respectively totally limit to 50%, but still limit less compared to other cards.

        Reply
      2. Kiran

        Hi all,

        I too had a very low limit with YFE kept checking with costumer care for LE but they kept telling no offer and mine is 3 year old card.

        So I stopped using the card and put it in cold for about 4-6 months then had received a mail for LE almost doubling my existing limit.

        So would advise to put the card on cold for 6 months to get an auto LE Offer.

        Calling costumer care or escalating doesn’t serve the purpose.

        Cheers,
        Kiran

        Reply
    41. Aman S

      Is it worth routing ones utility payments through a credit card? If yes, is Infinia or YFE better in that regard, I know YFE does 1000 RP / autobill but do you still earn points on the actual spend? HDFC does some cashback but the T&C on either aren’t clear to me.

      Reply
    42. Shijith

      Yes exclusive reduce the reward points now. As of now, they give 6 reward point for 100 rupees spend (1 reward point = 25 paisa), previously it was 10 reward points. They give 12 reward point for Travel Agencies & Tour Operators, Domestic Airlines and Dining. So 2.5% benefit is not accurate now.
      Yes bank also give 10X and 5X reward point for online purchases (amazon, flipkart etc).
      It make sense to update the document.

      Reply
      1. MT

        There is a dedicated article on the forum about tue devaluation you are referring to

        Reply
    43. Aravind M

      My Yes First Exclusive has only 1.5% reward rate now (6 points per 100 Spend @0.25/point), whereas Infinia still has the 3.3%.

      Reply
    44. RAGIB

      Now there is no comparison between YFE & Infinia after the devaluation coming into effect from 15th june 2021.

      Once YFE was a good competitor to infinia but now i don’t think YFE will even qualify to be considered as a super premium card anymore.

      Reply

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