Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card Review: Attractive Perks for Streaming Services, Fast Food, and Public Transport

At first glance, the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card seems to be a bit of a head-scratcher. The headlining feature of this Standard Chartered credit card is a quite-attractive 6% cashback rate, with no minimum spending required. 

It gets better. There are no annual fees for this credit card whatsoever, and you can also split your payment into three interest-free instalments.

But, closer inspection reveals that the cashback is awarded as reward points, and is applicable only on some rather narrowly defined transactions, such as fast food and public transit.  

So, what exactly is this newly launched card all about? Who is this credit card designed for? And how can you make the best use of it?

Let’s find out!

Table of contents

• Overview: Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card
• Reasons to get the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card
• Eligibility, fees & charges
• How to apply?
• Should you apply for the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card?

What can the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card do for you?

Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card product summary:

• 6% cashback on fast food, coffee and toast, digital subscriptions and bus & MRT rides
• No minimum spend required to earn cashback
• Cashback awarded as 360° Rewards Points
• 3-month interest-free instalment plans with 100% rebate of service fee
• No annual fees
• No cash advance fees
• Complimentary travel insurance with up to S$500,000 coverage
• Annual income requirement:  S$30,000 (Singaporeans/PR), S$60,000 (Foreigners)
• Minimum age: 21

Why should you get the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card?

#1: Save more with cashback on everyday spending and annual fee waiver

Credit cards are designed to help you save money in one way or another, and the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card is no different. 

However, this card takes it one step further by helping you save money in two ways – by giving you cashback with no minimum spend, and by doing away with the customary annual fee.

As a result, you’ll earn cashback equivalent to a true 6%, awarded as 360° Rewards Points, with every dollar you spend on fast food, coffee and toast, digital streaming services, and bus and MRT rides. And because there is no annual fee to pay, every cent of this extra value you earned is yours to use.

To delve further, cardholders will earn a base 1.6 360° Rewards Points per S$1 (worth 0.5% cashback) on all other spend and a bonus 17.6 360° Rewards Points per S$1 (worth 5.5% cashback) on all eligible bonus categories. Bonus 360° Rewards Points are credited in the following statement month, capped at 14,400 bonus points per month.

Hence, if you are a regular consumer of McDonald’s, eat breakfast thrice a week at Ya Kun, have an ac tive Netflix, Spotify or Disney+ subscription, and take the bus and/or MRT every day, switching to the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card could help you unlock more savings than ever before.

Note: In order to redeem cashback, you'll need a minimum of 3,200 360° Rewards Points to redeem in S$10 blocks.

#2: Greater financial flexibility with interest-free instalment plans

One notable feature of the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card is the bundled 3-month interest-free instalment plan feature, which allows you to split up a large purchase into three payments. 

For example, suppose you intend to break up a S$300 transaction into instalments:

Transaction amount = S$300
Instalment tenure = 3 months
Monthly repayment = S$300 / 3 = S$100
One-time service fee = N/A

This is a handy little option that allows you to meet urgent financial needs (say, the washing machine broke down and you don’t quite have the savings to replace it), without having to go through the trouble of applying for a loan or a balance transfer. 

Perhaps best of all, instalment plans are 0% interest, so you won’t have to worry about paying extra. On top of that, there is no service fee whatsoever.

See also: 6 Things About 0% Interest Credit Card Instalment Plans

#3: Complimentary travel insurance for principal cardholder

The Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card comes with complimentary travel insurance, offering you up to S$500,000 in worldwide personal accident coverage. You’ll also be covered for up to S$25,000 for emergency medical assistance, evacuation and repatriation.

While not the most robust of travel insurance plans, this included policy nevertheless offers a rudimentary degree of coverage for any overseas trip you take, which is always better than going completely without any insurance at all.  

For more details, refer to the policy coverage here.

Read more:
Best Covid-19 Travel Insurance Plans
Best Family Travel Insurance Plans
Best Travel Insurance Plans and Promotions in Singapore

What fees & charges should you look out for?

Here are some fees and charges you could incur while using the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card. Be sure to refer to the full list of bank fees as well. 

• Annual fee: Waived perpetually
• Late payment charge: S$100
• Minimum monthly payment: 1% of the current balance or S$50, whichever is higher, plus any overdue amounts
• Overlimit fee: S$40
• Interest on purchases: 23.9% to 29.9% p.a. based on the Bank’s assessment of your credit profile
• Interest on cash advance: Waived until 31 Dec 2023, otherwise 6% per transaction or minimum S$15 plus finance charges of 0.082% over day
• Transfer fee: S$27 (KrisFlyer Miles)
• 360° Rewards Points transfer fee: S$10 per 100,000 Rewards Points to each nominee's credit card account

Eligibility criteria

• At least 21 years old
• Singaporeans or PRs: Annual income of at least S$30,000
• Foreigners: 
  • Annual income of at least S$60,000 
  • Holder of P1, P2 or Q type employment passes
  • Q pass holders must have at least 12 months’ validity on their passes

How to apply? 

Click on the ‘Apply Now’ button on this page and complete the SingSaver application form. You might need to prepare the following documents for the application process:

• Front and back of NRIC/Passport/Employment Pass
• Salaried employees: Past 6 months CPF statement (Singaporean/PR) or latest computerised payslip and/or latest Income Tax Notice of Assessment
• Self-employed: Copy of 2 years Income Tax Notice of Assessment (Min. 2 years of business required)
• For commission earners:
  • Latest 3 months' payslip and latest Income Tax Notice of Assessment, or
  • Latest 6 months' CPF contribution statement, or
  • Latest 3 months' payslip
  • Copy of 2 years' Income Tax Notice of Assessment (For 100% commission earners)

Should you get the Standard Chartered Smart Credit Card?

Those whose spending habits include quite a bit of fast food, local coffee and toast shops, online streaming services and public transit will find some real value to be unlocked here, given how there’s no minimum monthly spend to earn cashback, and no annual fees to pay. 

This card is also a good option if you’re looking for a credit card that provides some extra leeway via short-tenure, interest-free instalment plans, handy for coping with the occasional surge in spending.