Author: Matt

Matt has been an avid points collector since 1992 (an elementary school student), when his dad signed up for the new (at the time) Air Miles program. Since then, Matt took a keen interest in learning how the miles and points world works. He quickly found out that there is a lot of value in leveraging miles and points to fund his passion for travelling.
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Best Current First Year Fee Waived Cards for July 2019

ByMatt

Many promotions ended in June, but new promotions are being offered in July. So the list has trimmed down quite a bit for this month.One card that I would pay closer attention to is the Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite Card, which currently has a $99 annual fee (first year fee waived if you apply before October 31, 2019). However, the annual fee goes up to $120 on August 1, 2019. I am going to assume that Scotiabank is going to honour the October 31st promotional period. But if you want to be safe, I would apply for this card before August 1 to take advantage of the current offer. See the other two monthly lists on how we highlighted the featured card:

Laurentian Bank Phasing out Tellers

ByMatt

By Monday, July 22, 2019, most of Laurentian Bank’s tellers will be out of work, a phase out process that started back in 2016. I have no written extensively about Laurentian Bank (category), but I am watching it closely for my financial institution rankings (most recent post). In an era where more and more virtual bank (i.e. no physical branch offices with tellers) have become more popular, this is a bold move by Laurentian Bank and I look forward to seeing what potential can come with this. 

Earn Cash Back with Paymi App

ByMatt

Paymi is a shopper rewards program that allows you to earn cash back on in-store and online purchases as specific retailers. Basically, you spend normally with your existing credit and debit cards and earn additional account back on top of the rewards that you normally earn with your credit/debit cards.Below are the steps to get you started:

Thoughts on Air Canada / Aeroplan Changes Effective Today

ByMatt

Our buddy at DCTA already broke the news about some Air Canada and Aeroplan changes that are taking effect immediately.We expect to see more changes in the near future, ahead of the June 2020 full integration. I share most of the same sentiments as DCTA on the changes below, so below are some additional thoughts on each change.

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Top Cash Back Credit Card Offers for July 2019

ByMatt

A few highlights this month, it looks like CIBC upped their game by offering some competitive cash back sign up bonus offers. The Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card offer ends this month, so if you are still thinking about it, this is the time to get it. Personally, I am still more focused on earning miles and points, even though the cash back competition is as high as we have ever seen in Canada over the past 18 months. That being said, for those of you who are frustrating with miles and points, now is as good a time as ever to jump into cash back card. Keep in mind that we also have an going Top Cash Back Credit Cards page which consists of permanent and temporary offers, while this post focuses on temporary offers only. I have broken down the temporary offers into two categories.

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What I would like to see in the Air Canada Purchase of Air Transat

ByMatt

As you probably know, I have rarely written about Air Transat, due to a bad experience (which I got a lot of heat for). But a more relevant reason is because they do not have any loyalty programs associated with it. And the theme of our site is “maximizing rewards for Canadians”. All that may change once the full agreement passes. Until then, we can only speculate what will happen. I was actually quite surprised to find out that Air Canada wanted to purchase Air Transat, since Air Transat is considered more of a low cost, charter airline. So what value would it bring to Air Canada, other than buying out the competition, like how Air Canada bought out Canadian Airlines back in 2000. 

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Top Credit Card Higher than Normal Sign Up Bonuses for July 2019

ByMatt

Several offers came to an end in June, so there are a number of changes this month. The next big deadline is October 31, 2019 that has many offers coming to an end as well. Featured CardThe TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card extended its 80,000 sign up bonus and first year fee waived offer, so they continue to be the featured card of the month.

Canada Day! Mid-Term Report

ByMatt

Happy Canada Day!!We are halfway through the year, which means our annual mid-term report on our New Year’s wish list. Below is my 2019 wish list for the rewards world and a blurb on the progress so far this year. The final report will be on New Year’s Eve.Keep in mind that all wishes are generally a win/win/win scenario for everyone (rewards company, retailer and customer) involved in the transaction.

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Transfer Bonuses This Month (June 2019)

ByMatt

There are two transfer bonuses in Canada that are ending this month to look out for.35% AeroplanThe first one is Air Canada’s 35% Aeroplan transfer bonus when you convert Marriott Bonvoy points to Aeroplan miles with an added bonus. Below is the earning potential, depending on whether you take advantage of the additional 5,000 transfer bonus. This offer ends on June 26, 2019.