Bank Rakyat World Mastercard Credit Card-i

A travel cashback card with no foreign currency mark up

The Bank Rakyat World Mastercard Credit Card-i is best viewed as a travel and dining cashback card. It is similar to the Bank Rakyat Platinum Explorer Card, but the World Mastercard has broader cashback categories, a higher annual cashback cap and better lounge access.

The main appeal is 5% cashback on airline tickets, travel packages, hotels and dining, capped at RM1,500 per year. Compared with Platinum Explorer, which focuses on airline and hotel bookings with a lower RM1,000 annual cap, this card is easier to use because dining is included.

The other strong travel feature is the no mark up charge for foreign currency transactions. Many travel cards add a foreign exchange mark up on overseas spending, so this is useful if you use the card abroad. It also makes the card more practical for overseas purchases, even though the points conversion is not especially strong.

The card earns Rakyat Rewards points as well. Overseas purchases earn 10X Rakyat Rewards points for every RM10 spent, while domestic purchases earn 2X Rakyat Rewards points for every RM10 spent. For miles, the value is ordinary. Based on overseas spending, 5,500 points = 1,000 Enrich Miles works out to about RM5.50 per mile. For AirAsia Points, 2,500 points = 1,000 AirAsia Points works out to about RM2.50 per AirAsia Point.

The lounge benefit is also stronger than Platinum Explorer. Instead of 3 local Plaza Premium Lounge visits in Malaysia, the World Mastercard gives 6 Mastercard Travel Pass lounge visits at selected airports worldwide. This makes more sense if you travel internationally.

There are a few extra Islamic banking benefits. Cardholders get 0% Bank Rakyat Instalment Plan for purchases from RM1,000, with instalment tenures of 6, 12 or 24 months, subject to a RM50 minimum monthly payment. The card also includes free Group Family Takaful Coverage and Khairat Kematian of RM1,000, including guaranteed repayment of outstanding finances accrued through Credit Card-i usage.

One practical drawback is digital wallet support. Bank Rakyat cards do not support Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay, so you will need to use the physical card. That matters more here because dining is one of the cashback categories.

The card is also issued as a metal card. That gives it a more premium feel, though it should not be the main reason to apply.

The annual fee is RM500. It can be waived with at least RM40,000 annual spend, which is fairly reasonable for this tier if you already use the card for travel and dining.

Verdict: The Bank Rakyat World Mastercard Credit Card-i makes sense if you want travel and dining cashback, lounge access and no foreign currency mark up. The points programme is not strong enough to be the main reason to apply, but the cashback categories, RM1,500 annual cap and 6 Mastercard Travel Pass visits make it a more complete card than Platinum Explorer.