UMB Direct Cash® Visa® Signature Credit Card

UMB Direct Cash® Visa® Signature Credit Card Review

The Direct Cash Visa Signature Credit Card from UMB Bank is a flexible cash back credit card that makes earning cash back easy. In addition to cash back rewards, this card is a powerful tool for anyone who has existing debt and wishes to save some money while they’re paying it down, thanks to a generous introductory APR on balance transfers.

How to Earn Cash Back with the UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature Card

Earning cash back with the Direct Cash Visa Signature Card from UMB Bank is as easy as swiping your card (or using it online). UMB rewards cardholders for using their cards more; all purchases earn 1.25% cash back on any qualifying buys up to $5,000 on each monthly statement. Cardholders who spend more than $5,000 each month will begin to earn cash back at a rate of 1.5% for each qualifying purchase on their monthly statement, which is an incentive to spend more, since cardholders who do not spend more than $5,000 in a given month will not receive 1.5% cash back on their total spend for that month. Since the cash back incentive is applied to the total of all purchases made in each month, cardholders who come close to spending $5,000 might want to consider crossing that threshold so that they can earn an additional 0.25% cash back.

Cash back is automatically credited to cardholder accounts each quarter as a statement credit. There is no need to visit a website or use an app to initiate this cash back reward credit, as it is applied at the end of each quarter – you won’t have to lift a finger to redeem your rewards.

When redeeming cash back, the minimum redemption is $25; rewards don’t expire so if you have not accrued $25 worth of rewards in a given quarter, the cash back you’ve earned will roll over to the next quarter.

What are Non-Qualifying Purchases?

When swiping your Direct Cash Visa Signature Card, almost any purchase will earn cash back rewards. However, the following purchase types are excluded from this cash back rewards program:

• Convenience Checks
• Balance Transfers
• Cash Advances
• Returns
• Finance Charges
• Credit Card Interest Fees
• Credit Card Fees (like annual fees, cash advance fees, penalty fees)

Accessibility

One of the nice things about the UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature Credit Card is that it’s easy to use. Rewards can be earned from nearly any purchase, and cardholders can easily access their account information to monitor their spending activity, make payments, and update information via UMB’s website.

Additionally, there are no extra fees associated with this card that might hinder or discourage cardholders from opening an account. There is no annual fee, no fee or penalty if the cardholder accidentally spends more than their credit limit, and best of all – a generous, lengthy introductory APR on balance transfers.

Each card is equipped with tap-to-pay features for ease of use, as well as EMV chip protection to make paying with your UMB credit card fast, easy, and secure.

Direct Cash, Direct Savings

Cardholders who are already carrying a balance on another card but wish to avoid paying interest on it can take advantage of an extremely generous introductory offer on balance transfers when they open a UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature Card. When a new account is opened, and an existing balance is transferred within 60 days of account approval, cardholders will be able to pay down that balance with an APR of 0% for twelve full billing cycles.

With proper planning, this can add up to significant savings. To maximize those savings, it’s recommended to have a plan in place to pay off that balance entirely, since once the introductory period has ended, the card’s regular balance transfer APR applies to the remaining balance.

Visa® Credit Card Benefits

Cardholders will love all of the Visa benefits that accompany their UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature Credit Card. Enjoy peace of mind thanks to perks like:

• $0 Liability Protection on unauthorized purchases
• Travel assistance services
• Auto rental insurance

Should You Apply for the UMB Direct Cash® Visa® Signature Credit Card from UMB Bank?

There are certainly other cash back credit cards to choose from, and there are even comparable cards with no annual fee and a higher cash back earning rate, like the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard, for example. HSBC’s offering weighs in with a special rate of 3% cash back on all purchases, up to $10,000. However, the additional 1.5% cash back reward does come with a caveat – the 3% cash back reward is only available for the first twelve billing cycles after the card is opened, and it is capped after the cardholder spends $10,000 (after this threshold is reached, cash back reverts to 1.5%, which is the same as the UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature Card). HSBC makes up for this by offering cardholders an anniversary bonus of 10% cash back each year, something that the UMB offering is unable to match.

Another alternative cash back credit card that may give the UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature card a run for its money is the M&T Visa Signature Credit Card. This card offering is very similar to the UMB Direct Cash card – there is no annual fee, along with 1.5% cash back on all purchases (with no threshold to reach) and a 12-month introductory APR for both purchases and balance transfers. M&T’s offering beats UMB when it comes to several factors, however:
1) Lower interest rates – cardholders who carry a balance will save money with lower rates
2) No foreign transaction fees – cardholders who use their card overseas will save money thanks to no transaction fees when making purchases outside of the U.S.
3) An introductory bonus reward (10,000 bonus points after $500 in purchases the first 90 days), which is not available with the UMB Bank cash back credit card

Choosing between the UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature and its competition will boil down to personal preference, financial goals, creditworthiness, and (in some cases) your location. That said…

For a cash back rewards credit card, the UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature Credit Card has remarkably few “cons” when it comes to using it to save money. Cardholders can set aside beaucoup bucks thanks to a cash back rewards program that rewards them with cash back from every qualifying purchase they make. There is no cap to the number of rewards that can be earned, cash back does not expire, and the bank even gives an incentive to spend more by increasing the amount of cash back that can be earned once the cardholder crosses the $5,000 spending threshold each month. Spending a lot of money will add up to big savings!

The savings will continue for those who plan properly, and not just because there is no annual fee to hit your wallet; savvy consumers can take advantage of a lucrative introductory APR for balance transfers. Ideal for folks who have accrued debt on a different credit card and wish to pay down their balance without having to pay hefty interest fees, this card is a great option to pay down existing debt. If you’re looking for a way to avoid interest payments while whittling away at an outstanding balance, you might consider the UMB Direct Cash Visa Signature as a strong candidate for your financial goals.