Despite the toughest economic time since the great depression, Barclay’s introduces the Visa Black Card. This credit card is the ultra luxury credit card that directly competes with American Express’ Centurion card.
The most notable benefits include:
- 1% Cash Back on Purchases
- 24-Hour Concierge Service
- Exclusive Rewards Program
- Luxury Gifts
- The card is made of Carbon Graphite (can we say really cool?)
Qualifications:
Of course, the card doesn’t come cheap with an annual fee of $495. However, it’s much less expensive than the Centurion card which has an annual fee of $2,500. Also, it is said that only 1% of all Americans will be qualified for the card, so it is quite an exclusive club. (You can try applying here)
The Main Draw of the Black Card
My friend used to work in the concierge department and she tells me that they bend over backwards to try to help their clients. Hopefully, the Visa Black Card’s concierge service is just as good and if it is, the $495 annual fee will be worth it for some.
Extras
It’s amazing that the card comes with a 0% APR for 6 months on balance transfers. I would imagine that people who apply for this card won’t need to keep a balance but obviously, this is not the case. If you are looking for the top of the line card with great features, Visa provides one with the Black Card.
- Visa Black Card – Official Site
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I want a Visa Black card. I always wondered why anyone would want to spend $2,500 a year for the service from the Amex card but $495 is much more doable and reasonable.
$500 is a lot money for most people. Anybody have any real life examples what the concierge can get done that the average person can’t?
They have 24 hour concierge service and you can literally ask them to shop for you. For example, you can ask them to find hard to book tickets or buy Christmas presents for your family. I heard the AMEX centurion card’s agents will bend over backwards for you but Visa holds its own.
You know the economy sucks when you owe $90,000 in student loans and you get a Visa Black Card pre-approval on a $44,000 public interest attorney salary.
This goes to show how this consumer financial world is turned upside down. Credit card companies will look to an above-700 FICO score and never look at Gargantuan student loans as high risk as long as they are not in default (yet said loans could never be wiped out in bankruptcy).
Visa, you are entirely delusional. $495 pays for more than a month’s payment of student loans. I am proud to be entirely credit-card debt free, and I intend to keep it that way. Please try again when I win my first multi-million verdict.
This thing is going in my paper shredder… riiiight… nooowww…. (BZZZZ!!!!) =o)
~H.
I am not totally sold on the benefits of their cash back program, rewards, or concierge service although they are certainly nice things to have (esp for the relatively low annual fee as compared to the American Express Centurion card) although it is hard to argue with the flash that this all black carbonite card can bring to the table. If I wanted to whip out a flashy card to impress clients or business partners to pay for a dinner then this card would be hard to beat!
The Visa Black Card is simply the best visa card out there. While the $500 fee is a little high, it’s much cheaper than the centurion card by a mile while having the exact same benefits. Highly recommended!
Chris, you couldn’t be more wrong about the benefits. The centurion from AmEx is the best card out there by far. While it is much pricier than the Visa Black, it also offers many more airline lounge memberships/stays, elite hotel membership perks, and excellent travel services. The Visa Black competes more with the AmEx platinum than the centurion.
For travel, “the Visa Black Card offers up to $250,000 insurance while the Platinum Card offers $500,000 insurance. The Centurion Card offers $1,500,000 in travel accident insurance. If your baggage is delayed while traveling, the Visa Black Card will credit you $100 a day for three days, while the Platinum Card will insure your baggage up to $2,000. The Centurion Card will insure up to $1,250 for carry-on items and $500 for each checked bag.”
The point is that if you’re quibbling over the $495 Visa Black Card annual fee vs. the $2500 + $5000 initiation fee of the Centurion card, you most likely deserve neither, but I imagine you’ll apply for the Visa simply because the black carbon card looks cool, and you’re no doubt trying to impress a girl or your friends when your benefits are not going to be much better than your old Visa Signature card. Do some more research Chris. The Centurion trumps the Visa BC in every way.