1) Gloria Jeans Coffees
Faysal Bank:
15% Discount on Visa Gold, Visa Standard, Master Gold and Master Standard Credit Cards.
20% Discount on Visa Platinum, Visa Solitaire, Master Platinum and Master Solitaire Credit Cards.

HBL:
15% Discount on Visa Green, Visa Gold and Visa Platinum Credit Cards.

UBL:
20% Discount on Visa and Master Credit Cards.

2) Roasters Coffee House & Grill
Faysal Bank:
15% Discount on Visa Gold, Visa Standard, Master Gold and Master Standard Credit Cards.
20% Discount on Visa Platinum, Visa Solitaire, Master Platinum and Master Solitaire Credit Cards.

HBL:
10% Discount on Visa Green, Visa Gold and Visa Platinum Credit Cards.

Bank Alfalah:
10% Discount on Visa Classic, Gold, Platinum and Master Titanium Credit Cards.

3) KFC
Bank Alfalah:
15% Discount on Visa Classic, Gold, Platinum and Master Titanium Credit Cards.

4) Nandos
Faysal Bank:
Get Complimentary Starter OR Dessert on Visa Gold, Visa Standard, Master Gold, Master Standard, Visa Platinum, Visa Solitaire, Master Platinum and Master Solitaire Credit Cards.

5) Pizza Hut
HBL:
25% Discount on Visa Green, Visa Gold and Visa Platinum Credit Cards.

UBL:
25% Discount on Visa Platinum Credit Card.

Silk Bank:
Flat 30% Discount on Visa Gold and Platinum Credit Cards.

SCB:
25% Discount on Visa WorldMiles and Master Titanium Credit Cards.

6) FatBurger
Faysal Bank:
15% Discount on Visa Gold, Visa Standard, Master Gold and Master Standard Credit Cards.
20% Discount on Visa Platinum, Visa Solitaire, Master Platinum and Master Solitaire Credit Cards.

HBL:
15% Discount on Visa Green Credit Card.
20% Discount on Visa Gold Credit Card.
25% Discount on Visa Platinum Credit Card.

UBL:
20% Discount on Visa and Master Credit Cards.

SCB:
20% Discount on Visa and Master CashBack Credit Cards.

Askari Bank:
10% Discount on Master Credit Card.

7) Arizona Grill
Faysal Bank:
15% Discount on Visa Gold, Visa Standard, Master Gold and Master Standard Credit Cards.
20% Discount on Visa Platinum, Visa Solitaire, Master Platinum and Master Solitaire Credit Cards.

HBL:
10% Discount on Visa Green and Gold Credit Cards.

Bank Alfalah:
10% Discount on Visa Classic, Gold, Platinum and Master Titanium Credit Cards.

8) Burger King
HBL:
25% Discount Thursday till Monday on Visa Green, Gold and Platinum Credit Cards.
30% Discount on Tuesday and Wednesday on Visa Green, Gold and Platinum Credit Cards.

UBL:
15% Discount on Visa and Master Credit Cards.

SCB:
25% Discount on Visa WorldMiles and Master Titanium Credit Cards.

9) Johnny Rockets
Faysal Bank:
20% Discount on Visa Gold, Visa Standard, Master Gold and Master Standard Credit Cards.
25% Discount on Visa Platinum, Master Platinum and Master World Credit Cards.

Askari Bank:
25% Discount on Master Credit Card.

Silk Bank:
15% Discount on Visa Gold and Platinum Credit Cards.

HBL:
25% Discount on Visa Green, Gold and Platinum Credit Cards.

UBL:
20% Discount on Visa and Master Credit Cards.

SCB:
20% Discount on Visa and Master CashBack Credit Cards.

10) KababJees
HBL:
20% Discount on Visa Gold, Green and Platinum Credit Cards.

UBL:
30% Discount on Visa and Master Credit Cards.

11) Domino’s Pizza
Faysal Bank:
15% Discount on Visa Gold, Visa Platinum, Visa Solitaire, Visa Standard, Master Platinum, Master Titanium, Master Gold, Master Solitaire, Master World and Master Standard Credit Cards.

Askari Bank:
15% Discount on Master Credit Card

Bank Alfalah:
15% Discount on Visa Classic, Gold, Platinum and Master Titanium Credit Cards

SCB:
40% Discount on Visa and Master Credit Cards.

12) TGI Fridays
HBL:
25% Discount on Visa Green, Gold and Platinum Credit Cards.

SCB:
25% Discount on Visa WorldMiles, Visa Platinum and Master Titanium Credit Cards.

13) Butlers Chocolate Cafe:
UBL:
20% Discount on Visa and Master Credit Cards.

14) Bar B Q Tonight

Faysal Bank:
15% Discount on Visa Gold, Visa Standard, Master Gold and Master Standard Credit Cards.
20% Discount on Visa Platinum, Master Platinum, Visa Solitaire and Master Solitaire Credit Cards.

Bank Alfalah:
10% Discount on Visa Platinum and Classic Credit Cards.

HBL:
15% Discount on Visa Green and Gold Credit Cards.
20% Discount on Visa Platinum Credit Cards.

15) Pappa Roti

Silk Bank:
10% Discount on Visa Gold and Platinum Credit Cards.

So there you go folks, we’ve listed major cafes, restaurants and fast food outlets across Pakistan that offer discounts on various credit cards. While we think each bank is trying to give a decent catalogue of discounts to their patrons but HBL and Faysal Bank stand out with their discounts on majority of the eateries. SCB comes in at a close second for offering upto 40% discounts on various eateries. The next time you dine with your friends or family, make sure to pay via any of these credit cards to get fabulous discounts on your meals. If you wish to apply for a credit card please click here. Bon appetit!

Khurram Zahid

The post Best Credit Card In Pakistan Offering Discounts On Dining In 2016 appeared first on Smartchoice.pk.

Latest word says that SCB is aiming to increase its operating profits twofold in Pakistan within the next 5 years as the nation’s economy grows and so does the demand for loans. According to Mr. Shahzad Dada, CEO of SCB Pakistan Ltd, The bank is targeting an advance to deposit ratio of at least 45 percent in 12 months from 35 percent in the first quarter. The industry as a whole will see the same trend, he said, with ratios rising to as much as 70 percent in three years from 46 percent in 2015.

“The economy has opened up” and there is demand from private-sector borrowers, Dada said in an interview in Karachi, the commercial capital. “Putting money to work is the easy part. It’s finding the right quality, right sponsors, right business ideas.”

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is seeking to boost economic growth to its fastest pace in more than a decade after achieving stability through an International Monetary Fund loan program that averted an external payments crisis in 2013.

Suspicious Money:
South Asia’s second-largest economy may prove to be a bright spot for Standard Chartered, which posted its first annual loss in more than a quarter of a century last year and is seeking to restructure or jettison about $100 billion of assets. The company declared $1.34 billion of impairment losses on loans in neighboring India last year, a legacy of its now-abandoned policy of rapidly expanding in emerging markets.

In Pakistan, finding quality assets and exercising discipline in extending credit will be key to driving the business, Dada said. His unit’s operating profit climbed to 15.4 billion rupees ($147 million) last year, almost triple the amount in 2010, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

For Pakistan, the risks for banking are associated with “suspicious money” being put through lenders for illicit purposes such as terrorism financing, corruption and human trafficking, Dada said. The country placed in the lower half of Transparency International’s 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index with a ranking of 117th out of 168 countries tracked by the organization.

Standard Chartered had boosted its scrutiny of money flows, Dada said. The unit he oversees has more than doubled financial-crime compliance staff to 57 this year from 23 in early 2015, he said.

Lower Rates:
The London-based lender has been enhancing controls on money laundering, bribery and other offences and has been operating under deferred prosecution agreements with U.S. authorities since 2012, when it settled cases related to money-laundering failures and breaches of U.S. sanctions against Iran.

The bank’s Pakistan shares have fallen 15 percent this year, compared with the benchmark index’s 9.5 percent gain. Standard Chartered’s stock in London lost 3 percent in that time.
Pakistan’s private sector is being tempted to borrow after the country cut its discount rate by the most in Asia last year, and by 375 basis points in the past two years, after the drop in oil prices. The nation’s central bank unexpectedly cut its benchmark interest rate to 5.75 percent this month before the government presented its budget for the new financial year last week. Pakistan’s consumer confidence level rose to the highest level in eight years in the March quarter, according to New York-based Nielsen, which tracks the data.

Outstanding private-sector loans in Pakistan climbed about 9 percent to $35.4 billion as of April from a year earlier, central bank data show.

“The rise in loans tell you the economy is picking up steam and banks mean real business after heavily investing in government securities for years,” said Yawar uz Zaman, head of research at Karachi-based Shajar Capital Pakistan Pvt.

Khurram Zahid

The post Standard Chartered Pakistan Targets Growth To Increased Loan Demands appeared first on Smartchoice.pk.

Types Of Fuel Saving Credit Cards:
First of all we should let our readers know how various credit cards work to offer discounts on pretty much everything. For this case, there are three different ways in which credit cards offer these discounts:

1) There are dedicated cards that are made exclusively to spend on fuel and once you spend a set amount then you become eligible for the cash back which is a certain percentage of your total spending on fuel.

2) Next are cards that are not specific to fuel only but give cash back on various kinds of spending for e.g grocery as well as fuel.

3) Lastly come rewards card where you get reward points against your purchases and then you can redeem those reward points to get free fuel or other commodities as per the brands offered by your credit card provider.

Here are a few credit cards that offer cash back on fuel in 2016. This list includes cards that give cash backs on various kinds of services including fuel.

*PKR 1000 cap on cash back if refuel done from petrol pump other than PSO.
**1% cash back if refuel done from petrol pumps other than PSO.
All annual fees are exclusive of applicable FED.

Next come cards that offer reward points against spending which can be redeemed by getting various services available on your respective credit card. One of these is free fuel. Below listed are the Banks offering such credit cards:

Verdict:
Taking the above factors in consideration, we find that the cash back cards turn out to be a better value as they offer instant concessions against your purchases. In the cash back category we find that HBL Fuel Saver cards are the best as they provide the maximum amount of cash back. It’s definitely recommended for those who have a good amount of spending exclusively on petrol such as a case in which one has multiple cars that refuel for a good amount of money. If you think your usage is not specific towards one service only or if you’re spending is lesser then we think that Standard Chartered MasterCard Cash Back would be a good idea as it offers cash back on fuel as well as groceries which is a good idea for those with a family. Last but not the least, Faysal Bank mc² is a great alternative as well because it offers reward points on all types of spending be it shopping, dining or anything else. You can collect your reward points over a period of time after which you can redeem them to make free purchases from a list of brands that are onboard with Faysal Bank. Hence each card has its own suite of services that cater to various types of spenders and knowing your usage and then selecting a card is the best idea to gain maximum benefit.

Khurram Zahid

The post Best Fuel Saver Credit Card In 2016 appeared first on Smartchoice.pk.

Most banks that offer credit cards make sure to include Platinum card in the lineup. Corporations, particularly senior management, often use Platinum cards for the benefits they provide. It is often difficult to choose the best one from the options available, so we have compiled a list of Platinum cards provided by various banks in Pakistan and list down their rewards.

Note: The details have been taken from websites of the banks. Some facilities are equally provided by all banks to Platinum card holders such as high credit limits, personalized banking and VIP customer service. It’s the other facilities such as reward points and discounts that make the difference. In this blog we are covering these rewards so that readers can compare the cards and make a more informed choice.

Standard Chartered Bank Pakistan

Visa Platinum

• 5 reward points for every Rs. 200 (redeemable points)
• Concierge services

Bank Alfalah

Visa Platinum

• Discounts (Such as 20% off at Lal Qila, Pappsalis, Tuscany and Little China)
• 1 fortune point for every Rs. 50 (redeemable points)
• Concierge Services
• Priority Pass*
• Free CIP Lounge Access

Faysal Bank

MasterCard Platinum

• Shopping/dining discounts (Such as 25% off at Chung Pa and Cafe CZ)
• 1 reward point for every Rs. 200 (redeemable points)
• Double reward points for international spending
• Free CIP Lounge Access

MCB

Visa Platinum

• 1 reward point for every Rs. 50 (redeemable points)
• Triple reward points for international spending
• Priority Pass
• Free CIP Lounge Access
• 20% on selective local restaurants (such as Cafe Aylanto, Cafe Flo and Papasallis)
• Exclusive local discounts (such as 40% off on diamond jewelry from Almas Jewelers)
• Concierge Services
• Visa international discount offers

HBL

Visa Platinum

• Discounts (25% off at Nike, Charles & Keith, Pedro and Tag Huer)
• Free CIP Lounge Access
• 1 reward point for every Rs. 25 (redeemable points)
• 5x reward points for foreign currency transactions
• Visa international discount offers

UBL

Visa Platinum

• Discounts
• 1 reward point for every Rs. 50 (redeemable points)
• Triple reward points for international spending
• Free access to Shapes Health Club
• Free CIP Lounge Access
• Visa international discount offers

*Priority Pass is the world’s largest independent airport VIP lounge program and allows Platinum Card holders to use lounge facilities while they wait for their flights.

Conclusion

The platinum credit cards of all banks provide massive benefits but HBL’s Platinum Credit Card makes a stronger presence than most. The sheer number of rewards & benefits overshadow others, particularly 5x points for foreign transactions and reward point on every Rs. 25 shopping.

MCB seems to be close second, with some great discounts and priority pass. Some banks, such as Silk Bank and Allied, do not have dedicated information pages for the Platinum cards and thus we were unable to find details of their offerings.

While the rewards sound great, the real benefit of Platinum Cards is the personalized banking and access to lounges on airports. For frequent travelers these are like heaven and the better the options for redeemable points, the more beneficial Platinum card gets.

The choice of Platinum Credit Card should be based on multiple factors, keeping one’s lifestyle in mind, and the benefits of the card will enhance the shopping experience.

Khurram Zahid

The post Most Rewarding Platinum Credit Card in Pakistan appeared first on Smartchoice.pk.