Originally Posted by
tmiw
By "pretending to be a Discover card", do you mean using it at merchants in the US? I've been half tempted to apply for it on multiple occasions just to see how well merchants here accept UnionPay but considering I don't have any upcoming travel to China any time soon (plus the fact that WeChat/Alipay are what most people there use) makes it a hard sell.
That's correct tmiw, my experience at our Safeway (that would be Vons for you in SD) is it goes thru via Discover transaction, and nevermind the fact UnionPay card numbers start with a '6', just like Discover. The only gotcha is that I CANNOT use the chip on the card but rather it asks me to slide the magnetic strip instead, and then press Enter for credit. (It does ask if you want a cash back but I cringe at the thought of high fees).
You're right, if you don't have upcoming trips to China (or have no interests to go there), this card makes no sense. Hope that helps!