- Bank aims to issue 15,000 credit cards in the first year
Maybank today launched its exciting co-brand partnership with FC Barcelona, bringing to the Malaysian market the “Maybank FC Barcelona Cards”. They are the first co-brand FC Barcelona cards in Malaysia, targeted at emerging affluent customers and aims to further cement the Bank’s leadership in the cards business.
With the launch of this new card, Maybank will offer a complete range of FC Barcelona co-branded cards to suit its various retail customer segment – through both the debit or credit card.
The Maybank FC Barcelona Cards was jointly launched in Petaling Jaya today by Head Cards, Group Community Financial Services Maybank, B Ravintharan, as well as FC Barcelona legend, Gaizka Mendieta Zabala. Gaizka who is a former midfileder of the club was twice named the "UEFA Best Midfielder of the Year". Also present at the launch were
Xavier Asensi, Commercial Director of FC Barcelona and Ms Mandy Lamb, Group Country Manager, VISA.
Speaking at the event, B Ravintharan said, “This new card is targeted to our devoted FC Barcelona supporters, who are also our emerging affluent customers. The benefits that come from the use of the new card are numerous, including exciting lifestyle rewards like trips to Camp Nou, the home stadium of FC Barcelona to watch a Barcelona match and attractive discounts for FC Barcelona match tickets as well as FC Barcelona merchandise.”
The Maybank FC Barcelona Cards offers exquisite lifestyle rewards to cardholders such as Free for Life Annual Fee, 2% cash back on retail spend all year round for 10 months capped at RM50 a month, 10% cash back on retail spend for the months of May and August capped at RM100 a month and additional 0.10% p.a. interest rate on savings account for Barcelona debit card holders who sign up for the Maybank2U Premier Account online.
Ravintharan added that the partnership with FC Barcelona represented another key step in the Bank’s consumer banking strategy to ensure that it continues to build on its strong franchise in the region by offering distinct value propositions for different market segments.
“We anticipate that we will be issuing 15,000 new co-branded cards in the first year of launch and hope to be able to expand their partnership to our other regional markets, where there is a demand and strong following of the FC Barcelona team with Singapore being the first overseas market in January 2018,” added Ravintharan.
Maybank is currently the leader in the cards business in Malaysia with over 2 million credit cards in circulation. The Bank commands 20.5% share of the credit and charge card market in the country. Maybank will be the official Bank for FC Barcelona in Malaysia and Singapore.
Meanwhile, speaking on behalf of FC Barcelona, Xavier Asensi, Commercial Director said, “It is with much pleasure that we welcome Maybank as a regional partner of the club in Malaysia and Singapore. Through this new partnership, FC Barcelona will be able to continue to increase its popularity while getting closer to our fans in Malaysia and Singapore. It is such an honour to be able to partner with such a reputable bank as Maybank, a true leader” in the region.
In conjunction with the launch, Maybank is also organising a special competition where fans just need to sign up for a Maybank FC Barcelona card and spend a minimum of RM1,000 in four months to be in the running to win a 6 Day/4 Night all-inclusive package(Flight + accommodation + sightseeing) to Barcelona and two VIP tickets to Camp Nou to watch a FC Barcelona match. The competition which is sponsored by Reliance Travel Malaysia, begins in October 2017 and ends on 10 February 2018.
At the launch in Petaling Jaya today, FC fans also got a chance to win exciting FC Barcelona and Maybank merchandise by participating in contests such as Pose & Redeem, QR Code Hunt, Power Kick, Dribble Mat challenge, Speed Dribble Challenge, Freestyle Challenge and the Barca Quiz.