Breaking Points: Credit Card News

American Express has added several new benefits to the Gold Card. Cardmembers will now earn 5x points on prepaid hotels booked through Amex Travel, gain Hertz Five Star status, and see new dining credit options with Buffalo Wild Wings and Wonder added immediately. Goldbelly and Wine.com will be removed from the dining credit starting July 1, 2026.

To celebrate its 60th anniversary, Amex is also offering limited-time perks, including up to $96 in statement credits for an Uber One membership (through October 30) and a complimentary third night or 25% off select Hotel Collection stays through July 15. The annual fee remains unchanged.

While we’d prefer to see this offer on the Blue Business Plus, Amex is targeting some users with a no lifetime language (NLL) offer of $750 on the Blue Business Cash. You’ll need to spend $6,000 in 4 months to earn it. While that’s a strong bonus for a card that won’t count toward your 5/24 status, we’d still only recommend it in very narrow situations. To check if you’re targeted, sign in to your Amex account and visit this link, then click “Apply Now.” If you don’t see the elevated offer, you’re not targeted.

Avianca has quietly devalued LifeMiles awards for the third time in just over a year, with increases hitting partner bookings. Without a published award chart, changes are harder to track, but we’ve seen short-haul United flights rise to 12,100 miles (up from 10,000 and 6,500 previously), U.S. to Europe climb to 48,400 miles in economy and 92,400 in business on some routes, and U.S. to New Zealand jump to 66,550 miles in economy (up from 40,000). While some business class awards to Europe can still be found for 69,000 miles, pricing is increasingly showing up in the 81,000 to 92,000 range. This continues a trend of steady devaluations across the program.

Amex Membership Rewards is offering a 20% transfer bonus to Hilton Honors. The standard transfer ratio is 1:2, so with the bonus, you’ll receive 2,400 Hilton Honors points for every 1,000 Amex Membership Rewards points transferred. Offer expires May 30, 2026.

Wells Fargo has added Cathay Pacific as a new transfer partner, continuing to expand its lineup after last week’s addition of Wyndham. Cathay now partners with every major transferable currency except Chase. The program offers several sweet spots through its distance-based award chart, along with an excellent premium cabin product.