From 1 July 2025, Chocolate will be revising how Max Miles are awarded on the Chocolate Visa Debit Card. Cardholders can expect a reduction in the base earn rate, as well as a cap on bill payment transactions. Here’s a summary of what’s changing.
Current Max Miles Earning Structure (Until 30 June 2025)
At present, Chocolate Visa Debit Cardholders enjoy:
- 2 Max Miles per S$1 on the first S$1,000 spent each calendar month
- 0.4 Max Miles per S$1 thereafter, with no cap
- Miles are awarded on a broad range of spending categories, including:
- Insurance premiums
- Charity donations
- Utilities and education fees
This setup made it one of the more generous rewards systems for a debit card in terms of earning miles.
Revised Max Miles Earning Structure (From 1 July 2025)
Effective 1 July 2025, the earn rates will be adjusted as follows:
- 1 Max Mile per S$1 on the first S$1,000 spent per month
- 0.4 Max Miles per S$1 thereafter (unchanged)
- Bill payments will continue to earn miles, but will be capped at 100 miles per month
Before 1 July 2025 | After 1 July 2025 | |
Base earn rate (first S$1,000/month) | 2 Max Miles per dollar | 1 Max Mile per dollar |
Subsequent spend | 0.4 Max Miles per dollar | 0.4 Max Miles per dollar after S$1,000 (unchanged) |
Bill payments | Miles awarded, uncapped | Miles awarded, capped at 100 miles/month |
What Counts as a Bill Payment?
Bill payments refer to transactions under the following MCCs:
- 80 Medical & Health (MCC 8011–8099)
- 93 Government Services (MCC 9311–9399)
- 49 Utilities (MCC 4900–4999)
- 65 Real Estate & Property Management (MCC 6513, 6531)
- 63 Insurance (MCC 6300–6399)
- 73 Business Services (MCC 7311–7399)
Introduction of Miles Multiplier
In tandem with the changes, Chocolate Finance is introducing a new Miles Multiplier feature. Cardholders can earn additional bonus miles based on their average monthly balance across SGD and USD accounts.
Details are as follows:
- No opt-in required; bonus miles are credited automatically the following month.
- To ensure correct crediting, the email address on your Chocolate and HeyMax accounts must match.
Every S$5,000 in your Chocolate account boosts your miles by 5%. With S$100,000, you’ll fully restore the old 2 Max Miles per dollar rate.
Example to illustrate:
Spend Type | Amount | Max Miles Earned |
Bill Payment | S$800 | 100 (capped) |
All Other Spend | S$900 | 900 |
Total Miles Earned | 1000 miles | |
Average monthly balance in Choc Finance Account | S$100,000 | 1000 (100% of 1000 miles earned above) |
If you pay a bill of S$800, you’ll only earn a maximum of 100 Max Miles from bill payments that month. Only S$100 of the bill counts towards the 1 Max Mile per S$1 earn rate — the rest won’t earn additional miles.
You can still spend another S$900 on other categories (local or overseas, no FX fee) to hit the S$1,000 cap for 1 Max Mile per S$1. Beyond that, spending earns 0.4 Max Miles per S$1, uncapped.
If you maintain a S$100,000 average balance in your Chocolate Finance SGD account, you’ll get a 100% bonus on the miles earned — doubling your miles to 2,000 Max Miles for the month.
For more information, refer to the FAQs
So what are the rates for Chocolate Finance SGD Account:
Effective 1 June 2025, Chocolate Finance adjusted interest rates as follows:
- 3% p.a. on the first S$20,000
- 2.7% p.a. on the next S$30,000
I covered this on my blog, along with some alternative options to consider:
While Chocolate Finance isn’t a bank and isn’t SDIC insured — and has had its share of controversy — the current rates remain among the more competitive in the market. If you’re comfortable with the risk, you can park an amount you’re prepared to set aside to boost your miles on the Chocolate Visa Debit Card.
That said, I’m not planning to go out of my way to maximise the Miles Multiplier. Withdrawals take up to three business days, and it takes a significant deposit to restore the 2 miles per dollar earn rate.
Personally, I’ve mainly used the card for bill payments. For those who aren’t able to use credit cards yet, this card could still be a useful alternative. As mentioned in my recent update, I’ll be keeping the Chocolate Finance account for short-term funds for now.
Conclusion:
From 1 July 2025, Chocolate and HeyMax will reduce the Max Miles earn rate to 1 mile per dollar on the first S$1,000 spent, with a new 100-mile cap on bill payments. While the Miles Multiplier offers bonus miles based on savings balances, it mainly benefits those able to park larger sums. For most, it will now be harder to earn miles at previous levels with the Chocolate Visa Debit Card alone.
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