Several reports (see here, and here, and here) have rumored that Chase will be releasing a new premium credit card in the next few months.
The card is reported to be called the Sapphire Reserve credit card and will be marketed to compete with other premium (read: high annual fee ) credit cards such as the American Express Platinum and Citi Prestige.
Although ultimately it’s just rumor until Chase releases official news on the new card, there are several things that check out and support the rumors. For instance, check out the registered trademark Chase filed for ‘Sapphire Reserve’ here.
What We Know So Far…
Chase’s new Sapphire Reserve card is said to be released on August 21, 2016. The card will be a premium/high end credit card with serious travel perks and benefits. It will be marketed to compete with the Amex Platinum and the Citi Prestige. Valuable travel benefits go hand-in-hand with a high annual fee, however this could be waived the first year.
Here is some speculation on what the card will offer:
- Valuable travel benefits, likely in line with benefits offered by the Amex Platinum and Citi Prestige. No exact details of what benefits will be offered are known yet.
- The card will likely have a high annual fee, somewhere in the $300-$400 range. It’s still unclear if the annual fee will be waived the first year.
- A high welcome bonus of 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points, but the required minimum spend is still unknown.
- The card’s earning structure is unknown, but it’s rumored that it will earn 3X Ultimate Rewards points on travel purchases.
The Bottom Line
This is potentially great news if Chase does actually release a new elite level Sapphire Reserve credit card to compete with the American Express Platinum and Citi Prestige.
Currently Chase does offer the Ritz Carlton credit card which offers a handful of valuable travel benefits, but introducing a premium Ultimate Rewards earning travel card could be potentially add a ton of value for people focusing on earning valuable Ultimate Rewards points.
The bad news is that any new Ultimate Rewards earning card will likely fall under Chase’s 5/24 rule, which will make it a lot less exciting and out of reach for many.
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