Monday, January 22, 2024

Neo MasterCard and Neo Money Account Introduction


Updated on Jan 22, 2024: From my point of view, this is a very good credit card. If you live in a city with many Neo partners (such as: Calgary / Edmonton / Toronto / Vancouver / Winnipeg etc), I strongly suggest you to apply the Neo MasterCard. If you want to sign up a new Neo MasterCard (or Neo Secured MasterCard) through a referral link (or a referral code) and you can earn $25 bonus.  And you will receive an extra $10 welcome bonus when you open a Neo Money Account and deposit $50. If you need a referral link, please use ours: https://neo.cc/refer/Q8P3G5L7 or our referral code "Q8P3G5L7". Thanks.


Neo MasterCard is released by Neo Financial with following features:
  • No annual fee. 
  • You can automatically get rewarded (up to 30% cashback) when you pay with Neo at hundreds of merchants. Discover exclusive offers from your favorite national and local brands when you grab a bite to eat, shop for groceries, hit the gym and more. Rewards only get better over time, the more you use Neo.
  • Along with a physical card, you’ll have the option to pay with your virtual Neo Card right after you’re approved. Plus, get real-time notifications on every purchase and after each reward you earn.
  • Watch your credit climb with new ways to qualify, even if you’ve never had a credit score or are starting from scratch. It’s easy to do. Set up automated payments to your Neo Card from your Neo Savings account to build credit. And when you're eligible, they will increase your credit limit. 

You can download the Neo app on your smartphone and apply the MasterCard in the app. It is a MasterCard with credit limit and you need to upload photo of a government ID and your selfie photo during application in addition to the normal personal information required for credit card application. You can automatically get rewarded (up to 20% cashback) when you pay with Neo at hundreds of merchants. 


Updated on Jul 25, 2021: Neo Financial just updated its rewards plan. Now for all three rewards plans, you can earn min 1% cashback across all spend. And for its Plus / Ultra plans, Neo Financial decreased the monthly fee from $4.99 / $9.99 to $2.99 / $8.99. Based on your unique spending, Neo Financial will recommend a plan that suits you in your profile. Plus, you can switch your plan every month so you’re never locked in to an annual fee. From my point of view, theses changes are really good and make the Neo MasterCard more attractive.


When you apply a new Neo MasterCard, you can earn ~15% cashback on your first purchase at most Neo partners and ~5% cashback at thousands of Neo partners.


After your apply a Neo MasterCard, you can also open a new Neo Savings Account in the Neo app with just a few clicks. There is no monthly fees or minimum balances, with unlimited free transactions. You can use this account to pay bills, make deposits, send and receive Interac e-Transfers. You can also add your other bank accounts to Neo to easily withdraw and deposit money. The Neo Savings account is provided by Concentra, a CDIC member institution, and is eligible for CDIC deposit protection. Deposits held in Neo Savings accounts are combined with eligible deposits held at Concentra Bank, for up to $100,000 of deposit protection, per category, per depositor.


What makes the Neo Money Account different from other bank accounts?
  • Earn High Interest; it is one of the highest interest rate accounts in Canada now at 2.25%
  • No Monthly Fees
  • Unlimited free transactions
  • Pay your bills, transfer money, set up auto payments into your investment or savings account.

Updated on Mar 2, 2022: I have been using Neo MasterCard for over a year, and I like it very much. It provides high cashback (like 15%) when you first time use this card at a Neo partner.  It also provides cashback with Punch Mode. For example, there is a Pho Hoan Pasteur restaurant nearby and it is one of Neo partners. I get a punch for each qualifying purchase at this restaurant in the Neo app. When I make 4 purchases within 180 days, I can get 8% back on all 4 purchases. This is not a one-time offer. After 4 successful punches, I can see this offer again and again in my app. So, basically I can earn 8% cashback for all my purchase in this restaurant, which is quite nice. If you want to apply a Neo MasterCard, please don't forget the referral bonus below. Thanks. BTW, on April 1, 2022, Neo Savings Account will be renamed Neo Money. This change will have zero impact to your account experience. You can continue to log in as usual, pay bills, send Interac e-Transfers, and earn interest with no monthly or annual fees. 


Updated on Mar 12, 2022: Neo Financial has launched a new product Neo Invest, a private wealth management platform. You can build your own investment portfolios with following workflow: 


You can see Neo Invest in your Neo app. You can choose to set up your portfolios with a TFSA, RRSP, or Personal account. The investments included in your portfolio are based on your risk comfort. They can include a mix of ETFs, globally diversified assets, digital assets, alternative asset classes, and more. 


You will be charged 0.75% on Assets Under Management (AUM) as a discretionary management fee, which includes all custody and trade execution charges. The management fee is calculated based on your average daily account value and is withdrawn from your account on a monthly basis. Indirect fees may come up depending on your portfolio. These fees come from third party investments within your portfolio that have Management Expense Ratio (MER) fees associated with them. These fees typically range between 0.05% and 0.95%.

Updated on Apr 14, 2022: Now you can cash out your Neo Rewards Cash (earned through Neo MasterCard purchases or referral) to your Neo Money Account in addition to the credit card account. 


Updated on May 27, 2022: If you are new to credit or new to Canada, you can apply a Neo Secured MasterCard. It can be used to build your credit. With guaranteed approval, no annual fees, no hard credit check and unlimited cashback, the Neo Secured MasterCard offers an easy way to start using credit. Neo Secured MasterCard has the same cash back ratio as the standard Neo MasterCard (please see details below). Your credit limit is equal to your security funds. The minimum amount of security funds to get started is $50. Your security funds are stored safely in your Neo account and will be fully returned if you close your card and have paid off your balance. From my point of view, this could be the best secured credit card in Canada. BTW, if you apply Neo Secured MasterCard, please use our referral code "Q8P3G5L7". You will receive $50 welcome bonus. 


Updated on Oct 24, 2022: Now you use your Neo Rewards Cash (earned through Neo MasterCard purchases or referral) to redeem exclusive items in the app.


Updated on Nov 2, 2022: With Neo MasterCard, you can get the extra rewards you want. Now, you can choose from different Bundle themes, each with a unique combination of boosted cashback, app subscriptions, and insurances. Subscribe to one, or stack a few together on your Neo MasterCard to create your very own ultimate rewards experience. For example, with Travel Bundle ($4.99/month), you can get:
  • 2% cashback on all foreign transactions
  • Priority Pass airport lounge access at over 1,300 locations worldwide
  • SmartDelay free airport lounge access when registered flights are delayed by more than an hour
  • 1.5x cashback boost at all airline, hotel, and car rental travel partners
  • Comprehensive travel insurance coverage from Chubb including emergency travel medical, trip cancellation, car rental protection, flight delay, and more
Not bad, right? If you want to know more details on other Neo Bundles, please click here. Thanks.


Updated on Jun 3, 2023: In May 2023, I spent $180.59 on my Neo MasterCard and earned $27.63 cash back with overall cash back ratio of 15.3%. 


Updated on Jul 2, 2023: Now you can earn up to 4% cash back with Neo MasterCard at Shell gas station (Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia):
  • Earn 2% cash back with all Shell purchases
  • Earn 4% cash back when you pay using the Shell app (up to $8 back)
This cash back is in additional to the rewards you normally earn from Shell app purchase as an Air Miles member. This is a good news for Neo MasterCard holders.


Updated on Oct 3, 2023: Now you can open a Neo High Interest Savings account in Neo app and earn 3.4% interest. 


BTW, If anyone wants to leave his/her Neo MasterCard referral link below, please use the following format ONLY: "My Neo MasterCard referral link is: ******* " Other format will be deleted. Thanks. Note: because it contains link, we need to approve referral comments one by one. So, please be patient...