Does anyone know of another issuer besides USBank that offers a Visa Infinite? I rarely see it -- other than USBank's Altitude card.
It's only my curiosity that's asking -- I'm not applying.
Thanks! Be well, all!
@coldfusion wrote:Off the top of my head Finstar got them all in the US except the HSBC VI.
@coldfusion, I've looked at HSBC a lot before and don't remember seeing them offer a Visa Infinite in the US, only abroad. I think all their US cards are Mastercards. The HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard seems to be their top offering and has their best travel offerings. Or am I missing something? 
@Loquat wrote:
@wasCB14 wrote:
@UpperNwGuy wrote:Just remember that not every Visa Infinite card has all the benefits listed on the visa.com website. Each bank cuts its own deal with Visa, and the banks select from a menu of options. The more options the banks select, the higher their costs. Visa.com has the following disclaimer on their website: "Check with your Visa Infinite card issuer to learn more about your specific card benefits."
@Loquat wrote:
I'm still sad about losing the $100 airfare Visa Infinite discount that I use A LOT on my Ritz Card. *sigh*And without the airfare discount, is there really anything that special about VI?
CSR/RC travel insurance is great, but Altitude Reserve kind of skimped there last I checked.
@wasCB14 My thoughts exactly. When the airfare discount went away I stopped caring about Visa Infinite as it offers nothing that I'm not already getting elsewhere.
As always, whether the Visa Infinite card (in general) is a good card can be highly variable to profile, depending on your other card options, your lifestyle and spend, but also those exact benefits on your Visa Infinite card of choice.
Chase's travel protections on it's two Visa Infinite cards, the Chase Sapphire Reserve and the Ritz Carlton, are best-in-class*. If good travel protections are important to you, Visa Infinite is usually the way to go.
*For more info, see this recent thread where I posted info I summarized about travel protections:
https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/CSR-updates-coming-10-5/m-p/6154710#M1748688
Beyond the Visa Infinite benefits provided by Visa, the additional perks or rewards offered on a card can be a compelling reason to get or keep a card. On my Chase Sapphire Reserve, regardless of the mentioned airfare discount, I enjoy the easy $300 credit back against a wide variety of travel charges, the Door Dash credits as well as the ability to combine UR points in my Quadfecta (CSR, CF, CFU, INK) cards. Plus others factors that I won't get into here but have discussed before.
While it's not a card for my lifestyle, the UBS Visa Infinite seems to be in whole other league among the Visa Infinite cards. It has some very unique perks for the wealthy traveler. While it has a $495 AF, that is less than AMEX Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve. It has a $250 airline fee credit and a TSA Global Entry reimbursement every 4 years ($100/4 = $25 annually), lowering the effective AF to $220. You also get 12 annual passes for Gogo Inflight Wifi redeemable for one flight segment. (Gogo costs $7 per hour or $19 per day, so this benefit is worth about $100 to $200, depending on use.) As with many Visa Infinite cards, you get Priority Pass Select airport lounge access, but if you're a high spender, the UBS VI also gives you a $500 annual credit towards any lounge fees of your choice (as long as you charge at least $50K annually to the card.) Like other VI cards, the UBS card includes a Concierge service, but instead of the Visa Infinite Concierge, you get the UBS Concierge which is reputed to offer superior customer service.
For rewards, the UBS VI is not a segment leader, but it's clearly designed more for the luxury perks described below. You earn 3x points on commercial air travel, 2x points on gas or groceries, and 1x point on everything else. Points redemption values are estimated at between 1 ccp and 1.8 ccp and best redemptions are for airfare at certain ticket price points. Or, you can redeem for gift cards, merchandise, travel, unique experiences, charity or a statement credit but usually for no more than 1 ccp. (Per the points guy estimates) Also, there aren't hotel or airline transfer partners to enhance your point valuation. If flexible travel rewards alone is your focus, this is not the best card on the market.
So let's get back to the really unique perks you just don't see on other cards, because there are reasons this card might have a much greater appeal to the right consumer. In fact, the potential return on the luxury perks below could far exceed that of the purchase rewards value of this or other premium cards. Of course, the UBS card has the full collection of the Visa Infinite benefits offered on other cards such as the complete suite of travel protections, primary rental car CDW, reimbursed Roadside Assistance calls, no FTFs, Purchase protection, Extended Warranty protection, and Return protection. But here are some luxury travel benefits you would receive which you don't see on other cards.
- A Flight certificate (worth 12.5 hours) to use for flights on NetJets fractional business jet flights. And, you get a free flight hour on NetJets for every 25 you purchase, plus a complimentary annual upgrade certificate.
- Inflight Credits (worth $7,500 to $12,500) when purchasing a personal membership in Wheels Up, a membership-based private aviation company with a fleet of over 85 aircraft. (For corporate memberships, that jumps to $15,000 to $20,000 in credits.)
- On private jet charters with La Bas International, you get a $300 credit per flight towards chaufferred limosine transportation transfers and $300 per flight towards premium in-flight catering, plus other special perks.
- Special discounts and perks on chaufferred limo services with Empire CLS, which includes their private airport lounge program, a $50 credit on first booking, a 10% discount on fares, and complimentary vehicle upgrades.
- Special discounts with Luggage Free, which allows you to preship your luggage from your home to your destination with a complimentary second bag shipped on first shipment, 20% off shipments, and lost baggage insurance.
- Coordination of a special network of Global Airport Meet and Greet Services, available at over 500 airports worldwide, for arrival, departure, or between flights with a 15% discount.
- A $30 credit towards a Groundlink chauffered car service reservation, 15% rate discount and other discounts on services.
- In addition to a full compliment of benefits and account credits on the Visa Infinite Luxury Hotel Collection and the Relais & Chateaux Luxury Hotel properties, the UBS Visa Infinite gives also special benefits and account credits in luxury hotel stays with the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Groups, the Peninsula Hotels Group, the Conrad-Waldorf Astoria Hotels and Resorts, the Villas of Distinction, and the Canyon Ranch Resort and Spa.
Some other unique non-travel benefits you don't see on other Visa Infinite cards include:
- Price Protection up to $500 per item or $1500 per year, a benefit which many other cards have dropped.
- Identity Theft Insurance, payable up to $15,000.
- Event Ticket protection, payable up to $500 per ticket, $2,000 per event, $5,000 annually if you miss an event due to sickness, accidental injury, family death, traffic accident, or public transportation delays.
- Both the Visa Infinite and the no-AF Visa Signature from USB have a Cash Connect feature that allows you to withdraw funds from an ATM with no cash advance fees or finance charges, and both rebate ATM fees up to $10 (VI) or $5 (VS).
For the wealthy traveler who may enjoys the more common benefits available to the masses on other premium cards but also frequents private jets, chaufferred limos, and the finest luxury hotels, the UBS Visa Infinite card would be hard to beat. It offers some ultra-premium benefits not seen on other cards in this price class. Plus, unlike some exclusive ultra-premium cards such as the AMEX Centurion, this card is not by invitation-only. It's not even restricted to UBS accountholders. It's open to anyone whether they have assets invested with UBS or not.