Merrill Lynch
 

Anyone know if the Merrill Lynch Card is a good status card like Amex centuriun card?

Yes, please look using the search function. This subject has been beaten to death. Also, ML has an excellent website that explains EVERY perk.

card.ml.com

Status card? You mean, showing that you are wealthy? The Citigroup Chairman Card seems to be a good one at that. As far as I know, (1) you need at least $1 million in a Smith Barney Account to apply and (2) You must spend at least $10k in commissions; however, this can be waived if you have in excess of $5 million in assets as a Prestige Client.

Wow. Where did you see this? The qualifications sound loftier than a Centurion Card.

While I am sure that there are Centurion holders that don't have 1M in investment accounts. In general there are FAR more people with 1M than spend 250K/year on credit cards. Plus it isn't just 1M you have to use Barney :td:

The other thing if you are using it for status (not perks) people need to know the requirements. Unlike the Centurion that is featured on tons of media as the "it" card, most people have never heard of the Chairman.

If you are using it for perks the ML card seems pretty good, but it is too easy to get for real status. I currently have a non miles/points visa and am actively looking for a Centurion equivalent in the Visa world. The closest I have found is the ML card. However, I am still looking...

This is the information I was told when my Smith Barney advisor invited me to get it. I have seen very limited information about the card on the internet. As far as I know, you must be invited to become a member; unlike Centurion where you can apply for it once you meet the minimum spending requirements.

Here is Smith Barney's website with information on the Chairman Card:

http://www.smithbarney.com/products_...hairman.html?1

http://www.smithbarney.com/pdf/chairmanbook.pdf

There are the benifits. I would say it is wanting even compared with AMEX Plat or ML+

Maybe, but the annual fee is generally waived and you get a revolving line in excess of $500,000. For me, it means free Priority Pass.

Actually, this is not correct. From the Citigroup Charirman Card T&Cs:
"To receive a Citigroup Chairman Card, you must have an annual income of at least $15,000, and you must meet our credit qualification criteria. Your revolving credit line will be determined by your yearly income and a review of your credit report. Some revolving credit lines may be as low as $2000."

Maybe that is true, but you need to meet the asset requirements to be eligible. Here is a snippet from American Banker Magazine:

"Our strategy is to attract and retain high-net-worth clients," said Pamela Parker, a managing director and the director of client and account services at Smith Barney, the Citi unit that helped develop the Chairman Card. The card will carry an annual fee of $400... and will be marketed... to Smith Barney customers who have at least $1 million of assets and spend $10,000 a year on commissions. The commission requirement is waived for those with more than $5 million of assets.

Confirmed this with Citi.

There is a difference between target market audience for the card versus underwriting criteria for an applicant. While the card is primarily marketed to Smith Barney clients, anyone who has a Citicard can call and request an application. If you're willing to pay the $400/yr. similar to Amex Platinum and meet the minimal underwriting criteria, they'll issue you a card.

Ehe, 15K per year...purtty exclusive... :p I will remeber that if I ever see someone with one ;)

Made me feel special :cool: for 5 seconds, why did you have to ruin it :p ! Anyways, I still feel like this is a nice product. Frankly, I'm under the impression that most people don't obtain pieces of plastic to suggest how high they are on the income scale, but rather for the benefits. And having the fee waived and getting a redundant membership in Hilton Gold and Priority Pass isn't bad either :D . It certainly will shift a portion of my spending from Amex to Citi!

While they might state that the minimum income level is 15,000$ and the lowest credit limit 2,000$ I doubt that's Citibank's actual policy for a card that comes with a $400 yearly fee (even if it is often waived). For instance, American Express states in their Platinum Card's T&C "The minimum yearly income required to qualify for the "Card" is $100,000. If you are an existing American Express Cardmember there is no minimum income requirement to qualify for the "Card"." However, one would doubt that simply having something like, say, an AMX Blue for Students card that is not in default would actually qualify you for that card.

What I'm saying is that the Chairman's Card might still be considered exclusive (if only slightly so) due to the $400 yearly fee.