Axis Bank Olympus Credit Card: New Entrant in the Premium Card Segment

The card comes with a joining fee of Rs. 20,000 but compensates this well with the following welcome and renewal benefits:

• Taj/ITC Hotel vouchers worth Rs. 10,000
• 2,500 Edge miles worth Rs. 2,500
• Taj Epicure Membership with benefits like 25% savings on food & beverage, 20% off on Spa Treatments at Jiva Spas across hotels, 25% off on orders via Qmin App and 20% savings on best available rate on rooms/suites

These benefits offer users a good start, primarily because of these three reasons:

1. Unlike most credit cards where the activation benefits are offered for initial months or for the first year, here these are renewed every year, even without any spend-based conditions.
2. The Taj Epicure membership alone costs a minimum of Rs. 25,000; the worth increases by clubbing the value of complimentary vouchers and miles.
3. Similar to all major features on the card, the activation and renewal benefits again circle back to travel. However, the benefits are quite balanced between brand-specific and general travel benefits. While the vouchers and memberships are suitable for Taj/ITC loyalists, those looking for general travel benefits can best utilize the EDGE Miles.

The card offers rewards via EDGE Miles, as follows:

• 1 EDGE Mile on every Rs. 100 spent on domestic transactions
• 2 EDGE Miles on every Rs. 100 spent on international transactions

Note: Transportation & Tolls, utilities, insurance, educational institutions, Govt. institutions, wallet, rent and fuel transactions are excluded from the rewards program.

The card offers multiple redemption options to use the accumulated rewards. You can redeem your rewards (Miles) as follows:

• Against product catalog for the purchase of product and gift vouchers
• For offline redemption at select retail outlets; SMS based redemption
• For travel bookings via Axis Travel Edge Platform
• Against partner miles for 1 EDGE miles = 4 Partner points. The travel partners are divided in Group A & Group B as follows:

Users can redeem a total of 7,50,000 Miles in a year, with a capping of 1,50,000 Miles for Group A partners and 6,00,000 Miles for Group B partners.

While the reward-earning rate is lower than most other premium credit cards, Olympus offers the best point-to-mile redemption ratio of 1:4, which mean for each EDGE Mile, you get 4 partner points. However, consumers should understand that making the most of this rewards program depends on the usage. Since the earning rate is low, those who put maximum spends on their card will be able to accumulate substantial number of EDGE Miles, which in turn, will convert to significant travel savings through point-to-mile transfer.

Axis Bank’s rewards program comes with a long list of exclusions like gold, jewellery, etc. which could make it difficult for some users to maximize the earning potential of the card. Besides, miles transfer partners have also been divided into Group A and Group B. To utilize the maximum limits, users will have to plan their redemption largely around Group B partners as it comes with a higher capping. This could not impact brand neutral travelers, but consumers who are loyal to the brands that fall in Group A might be impacted.

Here is how much value you earn via redemption against air miles or travel partners on the Axis Olympus card and some other similar cards on spending Rs. 1 lakh:

The above calculation is done as per the base rate on the cards, assuming Rs. 1 lakh spent on eligible categories that are redeemable against the highest redemption value on the cards.

Some Key Takeaways:

1. In comparison to the other cards, Olympus offers no incremental rewards on specific spend values or categories. Thus, the scenario might change if you are a heavy spender. For instance, if you spend Rs. 2 lakh per month, you will earn 2 points per Rs. 100 with Olympus but may earn better with Magnus, with 35 EDGE reward points per Rs. 200 beyond cumulative monthly spends of Rs. 1.5 lakh.

2. Similarly, travel and shopping spends on HDFC Infinia could fetch users 10x reward rewards, overcoming the reward points earned from Olympus by a huge margin.

3. At a low annual fee of Rs. 5,000 the other new entrants in the premium cards league, Yes Bank Marquee offers up to 36 reward points per Rs. 200. It also covers wallet loading, recharge, rental, utility bills, insurance, and other Government payments in the rewards program that this card excludes.

4. The real differentiator for Axis Olympus will always be redemption, not earning. To make the right choice here, users will have to keep in mind their spending patterns and spend types. You should calculate the estimated expenses and reward points you can earn, and if those are enough to offer you a substantial value back on redemption.

The travel benefits on the card are the strongest reason you should be getting this card for. These are listed as follows:

Complimentary Stay Program: On booking a minimum of three consecutive nights, you enjoy the third night stay free at any of the hotels listed on Hotels.com.

Domestic Lounge Access: The card offers unlimited lounge access at domestic airports in India, with 10 complimentary guest visits allowed every year. In comparison to other Axis cards, no spend-based condition is mentioned as such.

Priority Pass Membership & International Lounge Access: With this card you get complimentary Priority Pass Membership that entitles unlimited access to international airport lounges. Here as well, 10 guest visits per anniversary year are allowed complimentary.

Concierge Services: The card offers 8 complimentary airport concierge services in one calendar year and 2 complimentary airport pick-ups/drops at domestic networks. Similar concierge services are extended at international airports as well.

Offering exceptionally good travel benefits, Axis Olympus competes with other prominent cards like HDFC Infinia and ICICI Emeralde Private that largely lead the premium card market. Here is a comparison of these cards:

Similar to other premium cards, this card offers benefits beyond rewards and travel as well, as listed below:

Complimentary Golf Benefits: The card offers 8 complimentary golf rounds or lessons at domestic golf clubs, extended to 1 guest per golf lesson. You can also earn 1 golf round or lesson on every additional spend of Rs. 50,000.

BookMyShow Offer: Users get B1G1 offer via BookMyShow. For the second ticket, you get up to Rs. 650 off on movie tickets and up to Rs. 1,000 off on the non-movie ticket. The benefits of movie and non-movie tickets can be availed twice each.

Dining Benefits: The card comes with the Dining Delights Offer, which allows exclusive offers via EazyDiner.

Axis Olympus has been launched to transition Citi Prestige credit cardholders into Axis Bank. While the annual fee remains the same at Rs. 20,000, the overall value offered by Olympus makes it an upgrade for Citi customers, and at the same time, competes with other premium cards in the market.

Some reasons why Axis Olympus outshines several other premium cards:

1. Complimentary hotel membership, vouchers and bonus miles offered as welcome benefits are not limited to the first year but renewed every year, unlike Infinia where Club Marriott membership is only for the first year.
2. At 1.8%, the card’s forex mark-up fee is slightly lower than most premium cards like HDFC Infinia, ICICI Emeralde, and Axis Magnus that charge 2%. Additionally, the card offers double the rewards on international spends which could further compensate for the charges.
3. Lifestyle benefits on the card have also been improved- additional airport lounge visits for guests, better golf benefits, Buy One get One offer on BookMyShow and dining benefits through EazyDiner.

Where does the card lack?

1. The reward earning rate on the card is low. Though compensated well via a high redemption rate, you eventually need to earn rewards first in order to redeem them.
2. Like all Axis cards, this card too comes with a long list of exclusions. This is actually disappointing for a super-premium card. Here, other cards like HDFC Infinia and Diners Club Black have an edge as they include utilities, insurance, and education spends in their rewards program.
3. Since premium cards are largely targeted towards high-spenders, milestone benefits add to their value for consumers. Olympus does not extend any such milestone or spend-based benefits. Moreover, the card does not come with an annual fee waiver condition, though renewal benefits compensates for the fee charged.

Is the annual fee of Rs. 20,000 justified?

Olympus justifies the annual fee through its joining and renewal benefits alone. High-spenders who put substantial purchases on the card would be able to earn considerable reward points (EDGE Miles), which could fetch them good value on transferring to airline or hotel loyalty programs. Since travel benefits on the card (like lounge access, hotel stay benefits, low forex mark-up, concierge service, etc.) are also impressive, consumers who make the most of these features can get excellent returns out of this card.