Weekly Recap: Mar 16–22 — Citi Transfer Bonuses, IHG's Big Offer & a Bilt Bug
Citi ThankYou gets back-to-back transfer bonuses to Virgin Atlantic and Avianca, IHG Business hits 200k points, and Bilt charges a fee it shouldn''t.
A strong week for Citi ThankYou holders — two simultaneous transfer bonuses landed, the IHG Business card jumped to an elevated 200,000-point offer, and a Bilt Cardless bug surfaced that's worth knowing about before your next international trip. Here's what happened.
Transfer Bonuses
Citi ThankYou → Virgin Atlantic: 30% Bonus Through April 18
Citi is offering a 30% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club through April 18, bumping the effective rate from 1:1 to 1:1.3. Virgin Atlantic miles are a perennial favorite for booking Delta One and ANA business class at compelling rates — at 1.3x, this bonus meaningfully improves what you can do with your points. If you've been sitting on Citi Strata Premier points and have a redemption in mind, this is one of the better transfer bonuses Citi runs.
Citi ThankYou → Avianca LifeMiles: 25% Bonus Through April 18
Running concurrently, Citi is also offering a 25% bonus to Avianca LifeMiles through April 18, lifting the effective transfer rate to 1:1.25. LifeMiles is a solid program for booking Star Alliance awards — United flights in particular — often at lower prices than booking directly through United MileagePlus. Having both bonuses live at the same time gives ThankYou holders real flexibility for wherever their travel is headed.
Credit Card & Program News
Chase IHG Business Hits 200,000 Points
The IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card surfaced with an elevated 200,000-point welcome offer this week — a meaningful jump above the standard offer. IHG points shine at Kimpton and InterContinental properties, and 200k can stretch to multiple nights at mid-tier options or a couple of nights at a flagship property. If you run a business and haven't picked up an IHG card yet, this is the kind of elevated offer worth acting on.
Bilt Cardless Quietly Charging 0.2% Foreign Transaction Fee
Despite advertising no foreign transaction fees, the new Bilt Cardless (2.0) card has been charging 0.2% on foreign transactions. Bilt acknowledged the error and confirmed refunds for affected cardholders. It's a small amount per transaction, but when you chose a card specifically because it has no FTF, any charge stings. If you've been using the Bilt Mastercard abroad recently, verify which version of the card you have — this issue affects the newer Cardless-issued product, not the original Wells Fargo-issued Bilt Mastercard.
Citi ThankYou Points Sharing Is Going Away
Citi is discontinuing its ThankYou points sharing feature, which previously let cardholders pool or gift points to other ThankYou members. This was a useful tool for couples and families consolidating balances before a big redemption. If you've been planning to share points across accounts, move on it now rather than waiting.
AmEx Tightens Marriott Card Eligibility
American Express added new eligibility restrictions for Marriott Bonvoy cards, further limiting who qualifies for a welcome bonus. This follows AmEx's ongoing pattern of tightening lifetime language and application rules across co-branded products. If a Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express card has been on your radar, check eligibility before assuming you qualify — the window may be narrowing.
Citi Easy Deals Program Ending May 17
Citi Easy Deals — a feature offering discounted gift cards to select cardholders — is shutting down on May 17, 2026. No replacement has been announced. If you've been working this into your routine, you have about two months to wrap it up.
Airline & Hotel Deals
Wyndham Award Tiers Updating in April
Wyndham Rewards announced award tier changes taking effect in April. If you have specific properties in mind and points on hand, it's worth booking before the changes land — properties moving into higher tiers will cost more afterward.
Singapore Airlines 30% Off Awards Through March
Singapore Airlines ran a KrisFlyer promotion offering 30% off business and economy redemptions through late March. If you caught it and booked, solid move — SQ business class at a discount is always a win. They run these periodically, so if you missed it, keep an eye out for the next one.
AmEx Business Cards: 10x on Hotels.com Through June 30
American Express business cardholders can add an offer for 10 additional Membership Rewards points per dollar on prepaid hotel bookings through the AmEx business Hotels.com portal, capped at 10,000 bonus points, through June 30, 2026. Check your AmEx offers to see if it's targeted to you — a 10x multiplier on hotel spend is worth stacking.
Chase Sapphire Reserve Adds Portal Price Matching
Chase rolled out price matching within the Sapphire Reserve travel portal, allowing bookings to be matched against lower rates found elsewhere. This improves the case for booking through the portal — especially when you want to capture the 1.5x points value without overpaying on the room rate itself.
Card Curator Take
The headline this week is Citi's double transfer bonus — 30% to Virgin Atlantic and 25% to Avianca both running through April 18. That's a real opportunity if you've been accumulating ThankYou points and have redemptions in mind. Both partners have genuine sweet spots that reward doing a bit of homework before you transfer.
The IHG Business elevated offer at 200,000 points is the other actionable item — if you're a small business owner and IHG properties work for your travel patterns, this is near the top of what this card has offered. On the cautionary side, the Bilt Cardless foreign transaction fee issue is a good reminder to periodically audit your statements, especially when a card goes through a major product transition.
Use Card Curator to track how these changes affect your wallet.