Velocity have launched a new transfer bonus promotion for the month of May. If you have rewards points with any one of its bank or hotel partners, you can transfer those points to Velocity until the end of the month and earn 15-20% bonus points.

It would appear that majority of partners (if not all) are participating this time around, as you can see below.

Earn 15-20% Bonus on transfers from these Partners

Earn 20% Bonus Points

While majority of partners are only eligible for the lower 15% bonus, there is a small list of cards where you can earn 20% bonus points. These are:

• The American Express Platinum Card
• American Express Business Platinum Card
• The American Express Centurion Card
• American Express Business Centurion Card
• The American Express Rewards Advantage Card

The standard transfer rate from American Express to Velocity is 2:1 (2 Amex Points = 1 Velocity Point). If you take advantage of the current promotion and transfer points, the transfer rate improves to 2:1.2 (2 Amex Points = 1.2 Velocity Points).

Put another way, if you transfer 100,000 American Express Membership Rewards Points from any one of the above cards in the month of May, you will receive 60,000 Velocity points. Minimum transfer limits apply, which is generally around 2,000 points. Transfers are instant, but may occasionally take up to 48 hours.

Earn 15% Bonus Points

All of the remaining bank and hotel partners are eligible for 15% bonus, the bank partners are:

• American Express – (Excluding the 20% Cards).
• ANZ Rewards
• ANZ Business Rewards
• NAB Rewards
• Westpac Altitude Rewards
• Commbank Rewards
• Citi Rewards
• HSBC
• Bank of Melbourne
• BOQ
• Bank SA
• St. George Rewards
• Suncorp Bank Rewards
• Card Services
• Diners Club International

Transfers from most of the above partners are in the standard 2:1 ratio, except Westpac Altitude Rewards (3:1) and Citi Rewards (2.5:1). Note that if you hold the Citi Prestige or Citi Premier Card, your transfer ratio is slightly better at 2:1.

Each of the above bank partners apply their own minimum transfer limits and transfers can take between 1 and 3 business days. So just be aware of that.

Then there are 6 participating hotel partners, these are :

• Marriott Bonvoy
• Hilton Honors
• All Accor LIVE
• Choice Privileges
• IHG One Rewards
• Shangri-La Circle

Every hotel partner has its own transfer rate. For instance, standard transfers from Marriott Bonvoy to Velocity are in the 3:1 ratio (3 Marriott Points = 1 Velocity Points). Similarly, Hilton Points can be transferred to Velocity in the ratio of 100:15 (100 Hilton Points = 15 Velocity Points).

Just like the bank partners, minimum transfer limits apply for hotel partners too. It is also worth pointing out that transfers from hotel partners are NOT instant and can take 2-7 days. All transfers are non-reversible so make sure you have done the due-diligence before you hit that Transfer button.

Should You Transfer Points

Velocity points are amongst the easiest to earn in Australia. The program partners with Coles, 7-Eleven, flybuys, Insurance Companies and a gazillion financial services company. So generally speaking, I prefer to save my transferrable points for some of the other airline partners such as Asia Miles or Vigin Atlantic.

That said, if you are planning to redeem Velocity points for travel and can benefit from this promotion, then it might make sense to do the transfer. In any event, I suggest you transfer the minimum number of points required and no more, that is because these transfer bonus promotions come around every few months, so there is no benefit in having unused points sitting in your Velocity account.

With the hotel partners, it is rarely a good idea to transfer hotel loyalty points to airline programs. Do this only if you have a pressing need to top-up your account and have exhausted all other avenues. The best value for hotel points is in redeeming them for hotel stays at high-end properties where cash rates are astronomical.

In Conclusion

Velocity are offering 15-20% bonus points from transfers from a slew of rewards partners in the month of May. Since Velocity points are so easy to earn, I tend not to transfer my transferrable points to Velocity (or Qantas for that matter).

Still, if you are desperately in need of some extra Velocity points, then it may be ok to transfer points and earn the bonus. Just remember that all transfers are final and cannot be reversed.

Do you wish to take advantage of the promotion? Leave a comment below.