Thailand’s Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) is launching a pre-paid Visa Card in partnership with The Mall Group. You can use it to pay anywhere Visa is accepted and there are no sign-up, monthly or load fees. And you even earn reward points and get discounts at the mall. I recommend pre-paid cards for peace of mind when traveling and using cards to pay in places you consider risky, making this a good option when traveling to Thailand!
Plastic is becoming more and more common and, despite plenty of card scams, it’s still saver than carrying large amounts of cash on your vacation. Especially when you are traveling and are not familiar with local customs, are not sure about the reliability of vendors or the safety, having a pre-paid card offers peace of mind: You don’t have to worry about your main card or bank account being hacked, ruining your vacation in the process. With a pre-paid card, you can never loose more than you have on the card!
The SCB M Visa pre-paid card is available at the SCB exchange booths at Don Muang airport, The Paragon Department Store Bangkok as well as the EmQuartier, Emporium and The Mall Group malls. You only need your passport (or Thai ID) to apply and there are no fees to open the card.
You can top it up at any cashier or service point at above malls with up to THB100,000 – that’s more than I’d want and should be plenty.
You even earn reward points – you get 1 point per THB25 anywhere and 2 p/THB25 at participating malls. You can cash in 800 points for a THB100 coupon, for a reward rate of 0.5%. That’s not a lot, but still one of the few pre-paid cards that offers any rewards.
You also get discounts at participating malls, so if shopping is high on your list for your next Bangkok visit, I’d consider this a bonus.
Bottomline: Pre-paid cards are a great way to pay with peace of mind in unfamiliar or unsafe locations. With many pre-paid cards in Europe or the US carrying staggering fees, having a local alternative at your destination is a great option. If you are a planning a trip to Bangkok, you should consider the SCB M Visa prepaid card. You can find all the T&C here. For more tips to plan your next trip to the City of Angels, check out my Destination Guide Bangkok!