Free round-trip ticket (20K TYP) w/ $25K Citi MM+ deposit

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As you know in the branch they have an offer if you open a money market account you will get 25000 thank you points and put in $25k, can you also do this promotion because this one is ultimate savings and if you put in $25k you get 20000 points. Some citibank people say yes and some say no. anyone tried it?

Also you have 30 days to fund after account opening so you can do some with credit card (if your limit is low) and some by going to branch and depositing or doing bank transfer

RagingBull said: As you know in the branch they have an offer if you open a money market account you will get 25000 thank you points and put in $25k, can you also do this promotion because this one is ultimate savings and if you put in $25k you get 20000 points. Some citibank people say yes and some say no. anyone tried it?

Also you have 30 days to fund after account opening so you can do some with credit card (if your limit is low) and some by going to branch and depositing or doing bank transfer

RangingBull do you know the promotion code for the in-branch money market promo? It would be nice to try to get 45k TYP out of these deals.

Those of you opening with a credit card, that really has little to do with this deal does it? Why dont we just have a separate thread "banks which let you fund accounts with credit cards as purchases"? Its a separate (good) idea which stands on its own across more than just citibank with no connection to a thank you point promotion.

Has anyone received the 40k points in TYN yet?

Pyromaniac said: what's the issue w/ funding w/ a credit card? Can't I just write a BT check to myself, deposit in another account, and write another check from that account to this one? The fact that it's BT money would be completely transparent.

The issue, or point that you're missing, is that BTs don't count for reward points/CashBack.

Has anyone tried funding the account with Chase UPS business Visa card? Is the transaction posted as purchase? Just received a Chase UPS Visa business card with 1% reward and 0% APR for purchase and BT for 1 year. It would be sweet if the funding using this card is posted as purchase. Thanks.

RagingBull, would you please let us know what branch you opened the MMA account? thanks

newbietx said: Read a few posts early on about Citi doing a hard pull for this deal. No mention of it since then in this thread.

So did anyone else get a hard credit pull. If so, please also post how you opened your account (Phone, Online or Branch).

Thanks!
Supposedly Citibank has stopped during hard pulls for applying for their deposit account products -- unless you add overdraft protection, which is considered a credit type of product.

juggler451 said: I did get a hard pull. Opened online. Did not apply for overdraft protection.
I don't know if it matters, but I did the MVS4 $200 promotion for a new checking account by phone, was told by a CSR that they no longer did hard pulls for opening deposit accounts, and didn't get a hard pull. I guess before I try this promotion, I'll contact a CSR, ask whether or not there would be a hard pull, if it makes any difference whether the accounts are opened on-line or by phone, and go from there.

If I'm told I won't get a hard pull, and receive a hard pull anyway, I'd contact Citibank, inform them of the situation, and if they couldn't have the hard inquiry removed on my behalf, I'd request they not contest the dispute of the hard inquiry that I will do with the appropriate credit bureau. I'd also get documentation of time, date, and person talked to at Citibank, assuming they say no hard inquiry would be done.

ETA: When I applied via phone for my Citi checking account, all I had were credit cards with Citi. When my wife applied via phone for her Citi checking account, she neither credit cards nor deposit accounts with Citi. She didn't get a hard credit inquiry, either.

April 28, 2008.

Opened accounts both for me and DH Sunday 5/11. Called to fund the account with credit card and was told new acct dept only open biz day. Called today (5/12) and one rep told me since the acct was fully open and he can NOT do initial funding over the phone any more. I said I could not fund yesterday as I called. He walked away and walked back said he can do it as exception (which I did not believe, see more).

DH called to fund the other acct (both accts are joint but linked to different citi gold checking, our experience indicated no problem to get both bonus this way). DH initially called citi gold number and they have no clue, asked to transfer to new acct dept, and had no problem what-so-ever to fund the acct with credit card.

Both CC was Chase, and we asked about auth form, both were told not necessary to fax in. For us (existing customer), all online acct app generated acct number instantly, so no file number. Waiting Chase to call us (past experience) and post the charge.

jfharper said: juggler451 said: I did get a hard pull. Opened online. Did not apply for overdraft protection.

juggler, did you have any existing accounts already with citi (i.e. savings)? Or did you open both the checking and USA or MMA brand new?

I would like to know that as well. In the past, I have had a hard pull for every new account even though I am a CitiGold client. That's why I haven't jumped on this one yet.

I did not have any Citi banking accounts prior to this promotion, just credit cards. I opened a checking and Ultimate Savings Account.

My wife applied using code CP74 on 4/20/2008. All parties interested in CP74 applicants, read on for another data point...

She already had one USA account (terms here) when she applied for the Checking/USA bundle referenced in this thread.

We have had some concerns regarding our 40,000 TYP (all information which follows are via e-correspondence):

May 7th ME"...To qualify for this offer you must make a minimum deposit of $25,000 into a new or existing Citibank Ultimate Savings Account and open a new regular checking account with minimum $1,000 deposit in a Citibank Account..." My clarifying question(s) I'd like answered is/are:
(1) Must I keep the funds in each account?
(2) If yes to (1), is it based on the average daily balance or balance at the time of the statement?May 8th THEMYou do not need to keep these funds in the account after the accounts are opened; the funds are there for your use. Please note that all Citibank balance requirements are based on the average daily balance.May 8th MEI know I have to still set-up direct deposit OR perform 2 bill pays per month for 3 consecutive months. To be certain though ... (related specifically to the balance requirements) ... in order to satisfy the conditions of CP74 and qualify for the 40000 Thank You Points, I must maintain an average daily balance of $1000 in checking and $25000 in the Ultimate savings account. Correct?May 9th THEMat this time you do not have to maintain the balances in question in your accounts. However; you must fund your savings account with a minimum of $25,000 and your checking account with a minimum of $1,000.00 to qualify for the promotion CP74.

Ms xxxxxxx, listed below are the terms and conditions of promotional code CP74.

Within 60 days of account opening you must enroll their new checking account in Thank You® Network and (2) complete at least one direct deposit to, or at least two electronic bill payments from, the checking account each month for three
Consecutive months.

Electronic bill payments are those made using Citibank Online, Citi MobileSM or CitiPhone Banking, excluding bill payments made to Citibank credit cards and transfer payments made to accounts with Citibank or its affiliates.

40,000 Thank You Points will be awarded within 120 days from the date of satisfaction of offer terms. You must redeem points within six (6) months after receipt of written confirmation that promotional qualifications have been met to receive two (2) roundtrip airline tickets to anywhere in continental U.S. valued at up to $400 each. Points required for this promotion are subject to increase after this time. Points can be redeemed after this time as provided in terms and conditions. Tickets do not include applicable taxes, fees and surcharges which must be paid by customer at time of redemption. Thank You enrollment and participation is subject to terms and conditions.

Offer can be modified or withdrawn at any time without notice, expires 3/31/08, is not transferable and cannot be combined with any other offer. Limit one offer per customer. Consumer accounts only.May 9th MEIn you last summary, I noticed the offer expired 3/31/2008... I have a printout indicating a different 5/16/2008 expiration. So which is it? Additionally, I noticed on the citicards.com landing page an extremely similar offer under a different promotional code (CSZ2 and/or CY22). Can I open a second set of accounts (Ultimate Savings account and regular checking), complete qualifying banking activities & enroll again in the Thank You Network to get 2 more round-trip tickets?May 10th THEMThank you for your messages regarding the CP74, CSZ2 and CY22 promotions. We appreciate you bringing this issue to our attention. Our records indicate that the promo code CP74 expired on 03/31/08. However, the promotion codes CSZ2 and CY22 expire on 05/16/08. Please note that these promotions are for new Citibank clients. We regret to say that clients with existing checking accounts do not qualify for the promotions.May 12th MEWhat is the formal process involved with disputing the information I received verifying 3/31/08 as the expiration of promotion CP74? I have a 74 page CP74 "Disclosures and Agreement" document which specifically states "Accounts must be opened by 5/16/08." Please advise.
That's all I have thus far. I'll post updates if there's interest in hearing the outcome.

I took the plunge and opened up via phone (1-866-458-9213) an Ultimate Savings Account, using my CashReturns card to fund an initial deposit of 38K. The promotion code I used was CSX2, applicable to those who already have a Citi checking account, and the bonus is 20K TYP . I was told the charge would go through within a few days, because the account has to be opened up before the card is charged. I was re-assured that the charge would show as a purchase.

I asked whether or not there was a hard credit inquiry for applying for this account and was told no, only a soft inquiry. The personal banker also set up my new account to link to my checking account. I was told I should receive the paperwork in around 7 business days, although I should see the account online sooner than that.

I'll post an update when the credit card charge goes through, or if something else happens.

ETA: I just called my CashReturns customer service number in order to warn them not to panic when they (or someone at Citi Cards) see the 38K charge on the card within the next few days. I was told they'd put a note in my file, which should prevent the transaction from being blocked and the fraud department from being notified. We shall see.

Edited for grammar.

I remember early reports of being able to stack this offer with the old MVS4 promotion for $200 to open a new checking account. Does anyone know if this offer can be combined with the newer CYAN offer for the same $200 / checking account bonus?? Should I apply online or over the phone?

eta - nm, I realize the CYAN offer expired 4/30. Dangit!

alik99 said: glxpass said: ETA: I just called my CashReturns customer service number in order to warn them not to panic when they (or someone at Citi Cards) see the 38K charge on the card within the next few days. I was told they'd put a note in my file, which should prevent the transaction from being blocked and the fraud department from being notified. We shall see.
You will have to call them again to verify the charge and remove the hold on the credit card account. Then, you'd need to call citi bank new accounts department and have them run the charge again.
I've been told by a new accounts supervisor that Citi's "back office" actually runs the charge. So if there's a problem, it looks like I'll have to contact new accounts who in turn will have the back office try to put through the charge again -- maybe. I was also advised by the supervisor that if I wanted the 20K TYP, I should consider funding with a non-Citibank credit card. Not getting the TYP sounded like a possible outcome, but not a certain one. My main reason for funding this account with the CashReturns card was to get the 5% Cash Back; the TYP would be a nice bonus, but not a necessary one to me.

However, as has been mentioned in this thread before, it's unfortunate that Citi takes a "back office" approach, rather than just putting through the credit card charge upon applying for the account. I understand that Citibank needs to verify the information on the application, but all this could be done very quickly, without what I'm told is a 2 to 4 business day delay before charging the card.

I hope you're wrong that it will be necessary to call Citi cards because the charge needs to be verified, even though they've already been notified about the charge and its amount. Based on a similar experience with my wife's CashReturns card, I fear you are correct, however.

glxpass said: alik99 said: glxpass said: ETA: I just called my CashReturns customer service number in order to warn them not to panic when they (or someone at Citi Cards) see the 38K charge on the card within the next few days. I was told they'd put a note in my file, which should prevent the transaction from being blocked and the fraud department from being notified. We shall see.
You will have to call them again to verify the charge and remove the hold on the credit card account. Then, you'd need to call citi bank new accounts department and have them run the charge again.
I've been told by a new accounts supervisor that Citi's "back office" actually runs the charge. So if there's a problem, it looks like I'll have to contact new accounts who in turn will have the back office try to put through the charge again -- maybe. I was also advised by the supervisor that if I wanted the 20K TYP, I should consider funding with a non-Citibank credit card. Not getting the TYP sounded like a possible outcome, but not a certain one. My main reason for funding this account with the CashReturns card was to get the 5% Cash Back; the TYP would be a nice bonus, but not a necessary one to me.

However, as has been mentioned in this thread before, it's unfortunate that Citi takes a "back office" approach, rather than just putting through the credit card charge upon applying for the account. I understand that Citibank needs to verify the information on the application, but all this could be done very quickly, without what I'm told is a 2 to 4 business day delay before charging the card.

I hope you're wrong that it will be necessary to call Citi cards because the charge needs to be verified, even though they've already been notified about the charge and its amount. Based on a similar experience with my wife's CashReturns card, I fear you are correct, however.
glxpass,

I think alik99 is right. Mine was denied this morning even though I called twice to note the account with amount and date. After I called card services to remove the block I was told the second time it will go through. Called the new account dept and was told they will try to run the charge through the second time (but they wont do the third time if second time get denied too). Not sure if you can call them in advance (my citicards.com showed a message to call 18009505114) so your charge can go through the first time. The second try will take at least 2 business days.

sjoy1 said: Asahi said: I had mixed results for funding Citi accounts with CreditCard.

First attempt, tried funding savings acct with Citi AA mastercard, CC charge was declined and was coded cash advance.
Second attempt, relocated credit line to diamond preferred card and resubmitted the CC funding form, charge went through as purchase. I ended up getting 30k Thankyou points for CC funding and hopefully another 20k points for the promo.

Others on this thread had success with funding with Citi AA mastercard and problem with diamond preferred, results are unpredictable and mixed unless you try it.

Good luck.
was it declined because it was over your Citi AA cash advance limit?

Yes, i reduced my Citi AA cash advance limit to $500 before faxing the funding form, I wanted only purchase transactions(30k) to get through.