It sounds like the party is now over. Rakuten is no longer giving 3x points when buying gift cards.
https://milestomemories.boardingarea.com/rakuten-cash-back-visa-gift-card-purchases/
If it was permitted, one could say buy a Delta gift card on Raise through Rakuten for 4x on the gift card plus 8% discount on the Delta gift card discount through Raise. Then you go use the card on Delta, pay for the remaining balance on a Delta Gold for 7x Delta earn points for the overall purchase. This was better than what you could do buying the giftcard with a 1.5x or 2x everyday spending card which is the entire point of getting a Rakuten card.
When are you better triple dipping with a gift card than not? Assuming the rewards points are worth 2 and airline 1 (and that you have the Delta Gold card).
AA portal/Citi DC/Raise 8% discount/Delta Airlines (1x, 4x, 8x, 7x) = 20x
Citi Prestige/Delta Airlines (10x, 7x) = 17x
Rakuten MR portal/Expedia/Delta Airlines (6x, 7x) = 13x
From the above example you can get comparable value with out a high AF card like the Prestige or Platnium by triple dipping with the gift card.
Official travel point totals as of 10/21/24 (1,358,177 Total Points)
Chase Ultimate Rewards 696,884 | IHG One Rewards 144,957 | Hilton Honors 144,521 | AMEX Membership Rewards 102,729 | World of Hyatt 76,095 | Marriott Bonvoy 65,343 | Citi Thank You 38,153 | Choice Rewards 32,460 | United MileagePlus 13,316 | British Airways Avios 12,333 | Jet Blue TrueBlue 11,780 | Wells Fargo Rewards 2,858 | Southwest Rapid Rewards 2,447 | NASA Platinum Rewards 1,883 | AA Advantage 1,744 | Navy Federal Rewards 1,087 | Delta Sky Miles 175 | Virgin Atlantic Virgin Points 100 | Lowes Business Rewards 7,102 ($71.02) | Amazon Rewards 2,200 ($4.75) | Discover CB 10 ($0.10)
