Magnises CEO Billy McFarland sat down with Fox Business along with Ja Rule to promote the black card for millennials. Ja Rule may have sold over 30 Million albums worldwide but we are not so sure their credit card has the possibility of that many members especially considering they only have over 1k twitter followers. In the interview on Fox with Melissa Francis who got her business fame from CNBC they referred to it as a “credit card”. We will tell you why we think it is more an “experience card” than a credit card or rewards card.
They claim they are not trying to be American Express or replace them and not compete with their flights and hotel perks but they are more about the community aspect and trying to impact members’ lives in the city where they live. It’s actually not a credit card but a payment tool such as Apple Pay. It works by taking your current credit or debit card and activating it to the heavy metal Magnises card through the data on the magnetic strip.
The card is only available for New Yorker’s but they have plans to expand to D.C. starting this month. Ja Rule will be one of our performers at the DC launch party on May 14 and I am sure you will get something VIP for being a cardmember. But it sounds more like a mega-fan club to me.
85% cardholders are between 21 and 29 years old making it a card for millennials. They claim that age does not guide them in the decision process for approval nor does income or occupation. They are more concerned about how people are going to use the perks, what they’re going to add to the community and what value they’re going to bring to the other members. They aim for a variety of industries who are doing all different kinds of stuff to get the diverse vibe from all kinds of people in the same room.
There’s a steep annual fee of $250 to carry this heavy black card of fame in your wallet. The card is open for anyone to apply but it involves filling out an application on the Magnises website and a phone interview.
Magnises perks are social life-centric with over 50 partnerships for an enhancement of a member’s daily life. From private drivers who are more personalized and know where you live and work, to private trainers in big gyms, restaurants, bars and nightclubs and everything in between. The company also plans to host members-only events like chef-series dinners, happy hours, parties, even educational talks. There is also a clubhouse such as the townhouse on Greenwich Avenue in the West Village to build a home base for members. The brand-new space furnished with contemporary art and leather couches and is open all day for cardholders to hang out with each other, have a drink and watch games on TV.
First, we consider rewards cash back or travel points not an experience at a townhouse in one place. Members who have this black card for millennials get to sit and gossip with people inside a townhouse in New York. Can’t we just go to a Starbucks to do that? This could be compared to the American Express Black Card or better yet the Platinum Card that lets you into lounges and goes without an annual fee the first year.
They have referred to it as a credit card in the past:
“Magnises Credit Card”
“With the ultra-high-end card, American Express’s “Black Card,” out of reach and no need for gas money (“No one drives in New York,” he says), McFarland did what any 22-year-old would: he created his own credit card.”
From AskMen.com
“Techie creates starter ‘black card’ for 20-somethings”
“it was a short leap to starting his own credit-card company”
“The college dropout behind NYC’s most exclusive credit card”
From NYPost.com
“Well, technically, it’s not a real charge card, because Magnises is not connected to any financial institution. It is just a way to dress up your everyday Wells Fargo or Bank of America card.”
NYTimes Article in Dec 2013
How do
es this compare to an American Express black card?
With the Black Card from American Express you have to show you can charge at least a quarter of a million dollars annually. To get a Magnises card, you need to cite a hot spot like Carbone or Beautique as your favorite restaurant and already have a credit card to use it with.
American Express founded in 1850 versus Billy McFarland a 23-year-old college dropout with only 14k followers on his Facebook page for Magnises. Not saying a college dropout is a bad thing we all know that the CEO of Facebook did the same. We are not exactly big fans of AMEX nor do we “promote” or “recommend” their cards.
Magnises is “Latin for absolutely nothing” which is mostly what you get out of one of their black cards but the loss from paying the annual fee. With American Express at least you get the dignity and the airport lounges and real rewards with some cards.
If you want to carry around a ridiculous matte black stainless steel card and feel like you are in NYC’s young elite then for christ’s sake get a real credit card. Not one of these Magnises cards or a Starbucks card that is re-loadable that only has a $50 load on it. We recommend one and only card for this but you have to pay us $250 to tell you.
No we actually will tell you for free and it’s the Ritz Carlton card that gave me over 140,000 points that I used at Marriott living high inside suites. Take your friends to a suite you got from this black card and there is no need to party in a silly townhome that is likely overcrowded with people you would probably not want to know in the first place. $300 annual travel statement credit you get to use twice with this card and it includes airline lounge passes or membership, seat upgrades, baggage fees, in-flight internet or entertainment, in-flight meals, and Global Entry fees. This card includes three upgrades to a Club Level room each year in the Ritz Carlton among many other benefits. This is the ONLY black card I would waste my money on besides the American Airlines Citi Executive Black Card.
You will get much more respect knowing you were not a sucker for some “elite” friendship card that does nothing but buy you a status of socialite and that can’t be bought with a “card”.
