Invitation only credit cards

When gold cards were first introduced they were invitation only.  In exchange for a superior level of service and a prestigious card, card holders would pay higher annual fees and interest rates.  The whole point of a gold card was not so much the extra service that was offered but the prestige of being special enough to be invited.

Over time gold cards stopped being so exclusive and started to be offered to the general public, and non-customers could apply for the cards.  At first this was still relatively exclusive as there were high income thresholds, but over time competition among card holders and the high demand for the gold cards ensured that the gold card became so common that a majority of the working population found that they could get some card that called itself a gold card.

Platinum cards started to be introduced as a “beyond gold” card that was at first invitation only and with better services. These services often included concierge services where a large number of mundane tasks could be carried out by personal assistants.  However over time these also started to be offered to the general public.

There was still a desire to have invitation only cards for the top end of the client base.  Cards such as VISA Infinity and the MasterCard Signature card have started to be offered, and are often in plain black.

The invitation only cards tend to be offered by private banks, or the private banking divisions of the large main street banks such as Citibank.  They tend to be offered to high earners and spenders or card holders with a high net worth.

There are a number of benefits that are offered on the invitation only cards.  There tend to be a large number of luxury travel offers that can be offered exclusively (or offered first) to the holders of invitation only credit cards.  The concierge service is offered as standard on many of these cards as are tailored rewards programs that allow a card holder to choose their own rewards.

Invitation only cards can be very expensive due to the high level of services offered.  Many of the cards that are invitation only tend to charge a premium as there is an element of prestige involved in holding these cards.  It is often the case that a publicly offered platinum card will have a comparable level of service for a far lower price.