Now live: New earn rates and easier redemption with the no fee BMO CashBack Mastercard + MORE May 2nd

Rexall’s new loyalty program – Be Well officially launched today and to celebrate they are offering 50,000 bonus points when you spend $50 or more in store.  This also means that as of today you will no longer be able to earn or redeem AIR MILES at all Rexall locations.We have mentioned Rexall’s new program a couple of times already on Rewards Canada as they offered their pre-launch sign up bonus of 10,000 points for supplying your email address. Those points will be awarded by May 31 when you actually join the program using the same email address.In those earlier posts we pointed out that the program isn’t rewarding at all on the base level. You earn 10 points per dollar spent and then you can redeem 25,000 points for $10 off at the till. This means you have to spend $2,500 to get that $10 or a return of 0.4 cents.  For comparison when AIR MILES was  a partner that same $2,500 would net you 125 AIR MILES or about $13 in terms of cash rewards.It doesn’t surprise me that Rexall went this way – AIR MILES is a pricey proposition for any retailer and an influx of back end loyalty program developers & systems have made it quite affordable to run your own program nowadays…

Another PC Optimum bonus is available for shopping online this weekend. Spend $150 or more online with Shopper’s Beauty Boutique to earn 50,000 PC Optimum points. That’s $50 worth of bonus points. Offer runs until May 3. Find out more here. Image via Shoppers We see the return of Wayfair to Amex Offers. In our household we received the offer on both The Platinum Card and Cobalt Card and it provides a $20 statement credit when you spend $100 or more by June 30. Remember to initiate your Wayfair purchase via an online shopping mall to earn extra miles or points! You can find the details of the offer on our Guide to Amex Offers or by logging in to your Amex account.Image via American Express American Express has followed Visa and Mastercard’s lead in increasing tap limits on their cards. Amex is also now allowing up to $250 per transaction for contactless payments. The latest statement from Mastercard shows a 40% jump in contactless payments in the first quarter so it nice to see Amex do this as well…

The new earning structure for the no fee BMO CashBack Mastercard have gone live today. We first let you know about the changes back on April 7 that see the card now offer 3% cash back on groceries (up to $500 spent per statement cycle), 1% cash back on recurring bill payments (also up to $500) and 0.5% back on all other purchases. Also kicking in today is an improved cash back redemption for the card as the minimum amount to redeem drops to $1 from $50.Here is a more detailed recap of the changes: Earning changesPrior to today the card earned  1% cash back on all purchases made that has now changed to the following:3% cash back on eligible grocery purchases, up to a maximum of $500 spent for each statement cycle1% cash back on eligible recurring bill payments, up to a maximum of $500 spent for each statement cycle0.5% unlimited cash back on all other purchasesAs you can see BMO has boosted the earning rate for grocery purchases to 3% with a cap of $500 spent for each statement cycle…

Chances are, you’ve never heard of a credit card that helps you manage both your spending and your savings. I hadn’t either until I signed up for a KOHO Visa card. KOHO is unique in that it blends your spending and savings by combining a prepaid Visa card with unique round-up savings, similar to Mylo, or in the US, Acorns. Perhaps the best part is that a KOHO membership doesn’t have to cost you a penny.
What is KOHO?
KOHO is a free, prepaid Visa card that works in conjunction with an app for your iPhone or Android device. The card is reloadable, making it easy to manage your spending with all the benefits of a regular credit card. The Visa nameplate means that your KOHO credit card is accepted at merchants worldwide. Because there is no credit limit, there is no need for a credit check and you can spend without fear of going into debt.
In addition to helping you manage your spending, KOHO includes a roundup savings feature, which works by setting aside small amounts of money whenever you make a purchase, by rounding up to a preset dollar amount…