PhonePe SBI Card SELECT BLACK to see reward points caps, new exclusions from July 1

PhonePe SBI Card SELECT BLACK users will see changes to the card’s reward points programme from July 1, as SBI Card introduces monthly caps on reward earnings across spending categories and expands the list of transactions that will no longer qualify for rewards.

According to a communication, reward points earned on eligible PhonePe spends and eligible online spends will now be subject to a monthly cap of 2,000 reward points each.

Insurance-related spending will be capped at 500 reward points per month, while other eligible spends will have a cap of 1,500 reward points.

The overall monthly reward points cap will be 1,000 reward points under the revised structure.

In addition to the reward points capping, SBI Card has widened the list of spending categories that will not earn reward points.

From July 1, reward points will not accrue on transactions related to tolls and bridges, gifts and souvenirs, jewellery purchases, educational institutions, utilities made outside the PhonePe app, insurance payments made outside the PhonePe app, and UPI transactions conducted outside the PhonePe ecosystem.

The exclusions are linked to specific merchant category codes (MCCs), including toll and bridge operators (4784), gift and souvenir shops (5947), jewellery stores (5094 and 5944), educational institutions (8220), utilities (4900, 4814 and 4899), insurance (5960, 6300 and 6380), and certain UPI-related transactions.

SBI Card said all other benefits and reward point accrual features on the PhonePe SBI Credit Card will remain unchanged.

The changes come amid a broader trend in the credit card industry, where issuers have been revising reward structures, introducing spending caps and restricting benefits on categories that generate lower margins or witness high transaction volumes.