Different business credit cards exist to suit different business needs and goals. Consider your business spending habits, fees and charges along with perks when comparing business credit cards.
Are you a business owner who’s looking for a business credit card to help free up your company’s cash flow, keep business and personal expenses separate all while enjoying rewards, perks or savings? Good on you for recognising the power of a business credit card!
Like how varied consumer credit cards are, the same is said for business credit cards.
Some are designed to help businesses earn rewards like cashback, miles or rewards points on their expenses while others could be more focused on keeping costs low through things like more favourable foreign exchange fees and no annual fees. Some business credit cards even throw in enticing travel perks or the ability to access flexible credit limits.
Best business credit cards in Singapore
Best for
Credit card
Key benefits
Low foreign exchange fees & no annual fee
Aspire Corporate Card
Get low foreign exchange fees of 0.7 per cent $0 annual fee
Premium travel benefits & generous cashback
American Express Singapore Airlines Business Credit Card
Earn up to 8.5 HighFlyer Points per $1 spent on eligible Singapore Airline Group flights, worth 8.5 per cent cashback Complimentary night stay yearly and up to 50 per cent dining discounts with Accor Plus
Rewards on anything you spend on
Citi Business Card
Earn two Citi ThankYou points for every $1 spent, equivalent to 0.45 per cent cashback or 0.8 miles per $1 spent
6 or 12 months interest-free instalments
Standard Chartered Business Platinum Card
Convert retail transactions above $500 into six or 12 months interest-free instalments with a one-time service fee
Cashback on foreign currency
DBS World Business Card
Enjoy two per cent cashback or 2 miles per $1 on foreign currency spend
Dining and unlimited airport lounge access
UOB Regal Business Metal Card
Enjoy two per cent cashback on overseas spend and all dining spend with no minimum spend
Flexible credit limits
Maybank Business Platinum Mastercard
Enjoy additional working capital to make purchases and pay bills without worries
Best for low foreign exchange fees & no annual fee: Aspire Corporate Card
The Aspire Corporate Card could be the business credit card for you if you are on the lookout for a $0 annual fee business credit card – one that also offer a low foreign exchange fee of 0.7 per cent.
This virtual business credit card helps you save on marketing and Software-As-A-Service (SaaS) spend — think Google Ads, Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads, Slack, Xero, Google Suite, Mailchimp and more — thanks to the 1per cent cashback it offers.
All cashback earned will be automatically credited into your Aspire Account monthly in Singapore Dollars.
Besides letting you access exclusive benefits from partners, you can look forward to receiving real-time spend notifications along with prompt customer service. Keep in mind that the applicant of Aspire Corporate Card has to be a director of a Singapore registered company.
Best for premium travel benefits & generous cashback: American Express Singapore Airlines Business Credit Card
The American Express Singapore Airlines Business Credit Card should be on your radar if your business typically deals with lots of overseas travel on the regular. As a co-branded Singapore Airlines American Express business credit card, you can expect a host of Singapore Airlines and travel perks to be delivered with this business credit card.
Highlights? Look forward to earning up to 8.5 HighFlyer Points per $1 spent on eligible Singapore Airline Group flights, worth 8.5per cent cashback. All other spends will earn 1.8 HighFlyer Points per $1 spent, equivalent to 1.8 per cent cashback.
The HighFlyer Points can be used to offset future travel purchases with no caps, no blackout periods, and no restrictions. Just so you know, HighFlyer Points are valid for a full three years.
This business credit card also lets you enjoy a free night stay yearly and up to 50 per cent dining discounts with Accor Plus across Asia Pacific, along with two complimentary Priority Pass airport lounge visits per year for you and a guest, up to $1 million complimentary travel accident insurance and trip cancellation coverage.
These sweet perks are in addition to the fact that American Express offers extended payment terms — up to 51 interest-free days from the transaction date — to help boost your business’ cash flow.
Welcome gift: Enjoy $0 annual card fee for the first year and receive a welcome bonus of 30,000 HighFlyer Points.
Best for rewards on anything you spend on: Citi Business Card
Citi Business Card is the one if you want a business credit card that lets you earn rewards on literally anything you spend on your business, be it meals, office supplies, marketing, entertainment or travel. This card lets you earn two Citi ThankYou points for every $1 spent, equivalent to 0.45 per cent cashback or 0.8 miles per $1 spent.
Besides making it easy for you to earn rewards across your business expenses, you will be thrilled to know that Citi Business Card will swoop in if you need to boost your business’ cash flow — it lets you enjoy a generous credit line of up to $100,000 should you be looking to expand your business.
That’s not all, you’ll also enjoy up to 55 days interest-free credit, on top of complimentary corporate liability waiver insurance coverage of up to US$25,000 (S$34,000) per card member and US$1,650,000 per company to protect against card misuse by your employees. This card also throws in complimentary travel accident insurance coverage of up to $1 million per card member when you charge the full fare to Citi Business Card.
Best for six or 12 months interest-free instalments: Standard Chartered Business Platinum Card
Standard Chartered Business Platinum Card is a business credit card not to be dismissed. Not only does the card offer one of the lowest annual fees on the market, but this $160.50 fee is also waived for the first three years.
For businesses that have to make big purchases but are unable to pay everything upfront, the card’s EasyPay feature lets you convert your retail transactions above $500 into six or 12 months interest-free instalments with a one-time service fee.
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What about rewards? Standard Chartered Business Platinum Card also lets you earn one point for every $1 charged to your card which you can redeem for rewards, equivalent to 0.3 per cent cashback on all spend.
Besides access to the 24-hour Visa Platinum Concierge for travel assistance, reservations and shopping and gift services, you can also look forward to enjoying ‘The Good Life’ card offers and privileges at over 3,000 outlets in Asia.
Best for cashback on foreign currency: DBS World Business Card
DBS World Business Card may boast a high annual fee and a minimum annual income requirement of $80,000, but this business credit card is packed to the brim with perks and privileges.
DBS World Business Card lets you earn cash rebates in the form of DBS Rewards Points which you can redeem for cash, air miles or even shopping vouchers. DBS World Business Card offers two per cent cash rebate on overseas spending (equivalent to 2mpd); one per cent cash rebate on local dining, entertainment and travel (equivalent to 1 mpd); and 0.3 per cent on all other transactions (equivalent to 0.3 mpd).
This business credit card also lets you enjoy up to 10 complimentary Priority Pass airport lounge visits per annum, up to $1 million travel insurance coverage when full travel fare is charged to the card, Mastercard easy savings®, dining, entertainment, transport and other business benefits, up to US$1.65 million employee misuse coverage and access to 24-hour dedicated service with DBS BusinessCare. You can monitor and analyse card expenses whenever you wish, 24/7.
Best for dining and unlimited airport lounge access: UOB Regal Business Metal Card
Created for business elites, UOB Regal Business Metal Card is a by-invitation-only business credit card that offers top-notch luxury perks and benefits, such as 12 complimentary Drive Home Valet Service, complimentary green fees with Mastercard Southeast Asia Golf Program, unlimited airport lounge access, complimentary Fraser World Diamond membership, Elite DISCOVERY Black status, and complimentary Accor Plus membership with the exclusive benefits of staying four nights (for the price of three nights).
Lastly, you enjoy auto-enrolment to Silver membership status in Le Club AccorHotels loyalty programme.
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UOB Regal Business Metal Card is fantastic for dining thanks to the 2per cent cashback on dining spend. Cardmembers also enjoy up to 50 per cent dining discounts at over 1,100 restaurants with Accor Plus membership, up to 50 per cent off weekday business lunches at Grand Hyatt Singapore, as well as complimentary champagne at renowned restaurants globally.
This exclusive business credit card also lets cardmembers enjoy two per cent cashback on overseas spend, 1.5 per cent cashback on all local retail spend, and 0.3 per cent cashback on utilities.
Best for flexible credit limits: Maybank Business Platinum Mastercard
Maybank Business Platinum Mastercard offers flexible credit limits based on the company’s profitability, absolutely unaffected by personal card limits. Independent limits can be set for multiple cards as well, within the overall limit. This business card lets you enjoy up to 51 days of interest-free credit on purchases.
To make things easier on businesses’ end, consolidated statements detailing expenses charged to all company-issued Maybank Business Platinum Cards will be provided. You can monitor spending and reconcile expenses for efficient tax reporting, too.
TREATS Points are flexible — they can be redeemed for air miles, cash credits, vouchers and more. Along with the welcome two-year annual fee waiver, Maybank Business Platinum Mastercard also offers complimentary travel insurance, global concierge services, worldwide withdrawal services and complimentary business logo printing.
You will earn 1 TREATS Points for every dollar spent on the Maybank Business Platinum Mastercard. You can continue to earn TREATS Points when you apply for Maybank Auto PayBills and charge your recurring bills to the Maybank Business Platinum Mastercard.
This article was first published in SingSaver.com.sg.
BusinessCredit/Debit cardsPersonal finance
