The Truth About the Standard Chartered Journey

At Refined Points, I’ve written extensively about the Standard Chartered Journey Mastercard—from a full review to strategic comparisons, especially after the devaluation of the once-revered Maybank 2 Cards Premier. In many ways, the SC Journey emerged as a compelling alternative for airline miles collectors, thanks to its relatively generous conversion rates.

But here's the uncomfortable truth: despite all its marketing shine, the SC Journey’s biggest flaw is embedded in its DNA. It's a Standard Chartered credit card.

Now, don’t get me wrong—Standard Chartered is a fantastic bank if you’re part of the Priority Banking crowd. Their digital infrastructure is clean, and their relationship management for affluent clients is among the best in the market (coming from someone who obsesses over banking data for a living). But when it comes to mass-market credit cards like the SC Journey, their strategy often borders on misleading—intentionally or otherwise.

That’s what prompted today’s article.

A regular Refined Points reader pointed out that another Malaysian credit card blog had listed the SC Journey as offering 1 MPR on Dining, Travel, and Overseas spend. That’s simply not true. The day a mass-market Standard Chartered card gives out 1 MPR on Dining will be the same day pigs fly and every other bank decides to exit the credit card space entirely.

Let's Walk Through the Facts

The SC Journey Mastercard requires a minimum annual income of RM96,000 and carries an annual fee of RM600.

It claims to offer “1 Mile for every RM1” spent on Dining, Overseas, and Travel expenses. Travel, in this case, refers to airlines, hotels, OTAs like Agoda and Booking.com, and even local travel agencies such as Apple Vacations.

Meanwhile, general local retail spend earns “1 Mile for every RM5”.

Sounds great, right? But here’s the catch—and it's a big one.

The term “1 Mile” on SC’s website does not refer to Enrich, KrisFlyer, or Asia Miles. It’s simply a placeholder for their in-house points currency, similar to TreatsPoints (Maybank), Bonus Points (CIMB), or UNIRM (UOB).

These “Miles” need to be converted to actual airline miles through a redemption process.

Dig into the fine print—yes, there is a redemption catalogue—and you’ll see that 2,000 SC “Miles” = 1,000 airline miles. That effectively cuts your earn rate in half, and now you’re looking at 0.5 MPR on Dining, Overseas, and Travel—not the 1 MPR that's being touted elsewhere.

The confusion is understandable. Standard Chartered’s marketing isn’t technically wrong, but it relies on the assumption that you won’t read the details. And if you don’t, you might be valuing this card twice as high as it truly deserves.

So the next time a card sounds too good to be true, read between the lines—and maybe check Refined Points first.

As a final reminder, the Standard Chartered Journey has the following MPR rates:

Final Thoughts

The Standard Chartered Journey Mastercard certainly has its strengths—especially for those who understand its actual earn structure and are comfortable navigating the fine print. But don’t let flashy “1 Mile per RM1” slogans cloud your judgment. What appears to be a strong 1 MPR earn rate is, in truth, a 0.5 MPR reality after conversion.

As always, the devil is in the details. At Refined Points, we’ve consistently emphasized that understanding how points convert is just as important as how many points you earn.

The SC Journey is a decent card, but it’s far from revolutionary—especially when the earn rate is inflated through clever branding. So before you fall for the hype, make sure you know what you’re really signing up for. Because if the SC Journey did offer 1 true MPR on Dining and Travel, you bet I’d be shouting it from the rooftops.