In Today's Issue: Citi Is Moving Into American Airlines' Living Room | The Chase Card Quietly Beating the Sapphire Reserve on Travel | Amex Platinum Loses Its Saks Benefit on July 1st | Choice Privileges Is Quietly Building a Flying Blue Bridge | Deal Alert: Buy Lufthansa Miles at 50% Bonus - Ends Today | Air Canada's CEO Exit Is More Complicated Than It Looks

There's a quiet reshuffling happening across the credit card and lounge world right now - and most people haven't noticed yet.

Three separate stories landed yesterday that, taken together, tell a pretty clear story about where the loyalty landscape is heading. Lounges are getting more crowded and more branded. Card benefits are quietly disappearing. And the Chase card you probably overlooked is looking smarter than ever.

Let's get into it.

Which credit card issuer is now getting its branding placed at the entrance of American Airlines Admirals Club lounges across the US?

The answer is hanging out near the bottom of today's newsletter... keep scrolling. 👇

Starting in April 2026, every American Airlines Admirals Club in the United States will start sporting Citi branding at the entrance. This is part of an expanded partnership between American and Citi, and it's more significant than it sounds.

Lounges have become prime real estate for credit card marketing - and this move signals that Citi is leaning hard into that space. For travelers, not much changes day-to-day, but it's a clear signal of the deepening relationship between the two brands.

The timing is worth noting. American has been on a mission to tighten its ecosystem around co-branded cardholders, and plastering Citi's name at every lounge entrance is a smart nudge to frequent flyers who don't yet carry the AAdvantage card.

Speaking of the Citi relationship with airlines - there's a transfer bonus running right now you shouldn't miss. Citi ThankYou Rewards members can transfer points to Avianca LifeMiles with a 25% bonus through April 18th, and to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club with a 30% bonus also through April 18th. If you have a stash of ThankYou points sitting idle, this is a genuinely good window.

Check all live transfer bonuses at milesandpointsdaily.com/transfer-bonuses

For all our American Airlines coverage including lounge updates and AAdvantage news, see our American Airlines stories page

Here's something the travel rewards community hasn't talked about enough since the Chase Sapphire Reserve refresh earlier this year: the Ink Business Preferred is now, in many situations, the smarter choice for travel spending.

The old Sapphire Reserve was a no-brainer for travel spend - it earned 3x on all travel, full stop. The refreshed version changed that. It still offers best-in-class travel protections, but the simplified 3x-on-everything-travel structure is gone. Now you're navigating categories.

The Chase Ink Preferred, meanwhile, still earns 3x points on travel (up to $150k in combined spend per year). Same points currency - Chase Ultimate Rewards - and those points transfer to the same airline and hotel partners. If you're also sitting on a Sapphire Reserve for the protections, pairing it with the Ink Preferred for earning is genuinely compelling strategy.

The annual fee on the Ink Preferred is $95. The Sapphire Reserve is $550. If your primary use case is earning 3x on travel and you're not maxing out the Reserve's credits, the math starts looking a lot different. You can use our Chase Points Calculator to run your own numbers.

And if you've been on the fence about whether the Sapphire Reserve still earns its keep after the refresh, we have a full breakdown worth reading

There was some confusion swirling around the Amex Platinum's Shop Saks benefit yesterday - so here's the confirmed, clean version: the benefit is available to both new and existing cardholders through June 30, 2026. Starting July 1st, it's gone.

The benefit gives Platinum cardholders up to $100 in Saks Fifth Avenue credits per year (split into two $50 semi-annual credits). Amex has confirmed that new Platinum card-specific Amex Offers will launch on July 1st as a replacement of sorts - but the details on those aren't public yet.

If you've been sitting on your first-half Saks credit and haven't used it, your deadline is June 30th. And if you've been debating whether the Platinum still makes sense for you overall, now's a good time to run the math. You can use our full guide to help decide if the Amex Platinum is still worth it in 2026

Two Choice Privileges stories landed yesterday that work nicely together. The first: Choice is running a 35% bonus on purchased points through April 13, 2026, bringing the cost down to just 0.76 cents per point. The second - and the more interesting one for points enthusiasts - is a transfer bonus sending Choice points to Air France KLM Flying Blue.

Normally, transferring hotel points to an airline program is a bad deal. Hotel points tend to be worth more staying in beds than flying in seats. But if you've got a pile of Choice points you're not sure what to do with, Flying Blue is one of the more flexible programs out there - it prices awards dynamically, but it also has some genuinely competitive sweet spots on Air France and KLM routes.

The play here for a small group of people: buy Choice points at 0.76 cents with the bonus, then transfer to Flying Blue with the transfer bonus stacked on top. Award Travel Finder is a great tool to check whether Flying Blue has availability on the routes you care about before you commit.

For more on Flying Blue and SkyTeam redemptions, see our Flying Blue coverage

Quick one to flag before it disappears: Lufthansa Miles & More is offering a 50% bonus on purchased miles, bringing the price down to 1.39 cents per mile. This promotion ends today, March 31st.

Lufthansa Miles & More is a useful program for Star Alliance redemptions, particularly on SWISS, Austrian, and Lufthansa itself. If you've been eyeing a business class redemption to Europe and the math works for your trip, today is the last day to buy in at this rate. The full list of current buy points offers is at milesandpointsdaily.com/buy-points-promotions

Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau is leaving the airline by the end of Q3 2026, and the official story is that he's 'retiring.' The real story is stranger.

Rousseau recorded a video statement in English only following a fatal crash - a move that triggered an immediate firestorm in Canada, where the airline has specific language obligations tied to its government relationship and Quebec politics. The optics were terrible, and the board moved quickly.

No replacement has been named yet. For Aeroplan members and frequent Air Canada flyers, leadership transitions at airlines can sometimes precede program shifts - so it's worth keeping an eye on. For now, Aeroplan remains unchanged. For all our Air Canada coverage, check our Air Canada tag page

A few buy points promotions worth knowing about right now - some expiring imminently, some running through April. The full tracker lives at milesandpointsdaily.com/buy-points-promotions, but here are the ones I'd flag today:

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is offering a 70% bonus on purchased points through today (March 31st) at 1.47 cents per point. Virgin points are genuinely useful - Delta partner awards, ANA business class, and more. If you have a redemption in mind, use our Virgin Atlantic Reward Seat Finder to check availability first.

Southwest Rapid Rewards is offering a 50% discount on purchased points through April 4th at 1.5 cents per point. If you're chasing a Companion Pass top-up or need to cover an upcoming booking, this is one of the better Southwest buy rates in a while.

Not everything needs to be an award booking, of course - Friday Flight Deals is tracking some genuinely great cash fares right now if you'd rather keep the points in the bank.

The answer is Citi. Starting in April 2026, Citi branding will appear at the entrance of American Airlines Admirals Club lounges across the United States as part of an expanded co-branded partnership between the two companies.

Hit reply and let me know - I read every response, and this one I'm genuinely curious about. Lounge branding is getting more aggressive every year and I'd love to know how readers actually feel about it.

That's it for today. A few windows are closing in the next 24 hours - the Chase Avios transfer bonuses, the Lufthansa buy miles promo, and the Virgin Atlantic buy points deal all expire today. Take action if the math works for a trip you're planning.

See you tomorrow with more.

Points sitting in your account? These are the redemptions worth looking at this week, tracked by Award Travel Finder:

Hotels:

JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort & Spa - Aventura, FL, US | 7.4cpp value | 65,000 pts/night

The St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort - Dhaalu Atoll, MV | 3.0cpp value | 122,000 pts/night

Casa Marina Key West, Curio Collection by Hilton - Key West, FL, US | 1.7cpp value | 95,000 pts/night

Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica Punta Cacique - Guanacaste, CR | 1.8cpp value | 120,000 pts/night

Hotel Indigo Grand Cayman - Grand Cayman, KY | 2.0cpp value | 50,000 pts/night

Status Matches & Challenges:

Flying Blue Status Match - Air France / KLM | SkyTeam

Flying Blue UK (BA Status Holders) - Air France / KLM | SkyTeam

Flying Blue (Iberia) - Air France / KLM | SkyTeam

See all status matches →

Browse all award deals at AwardTravelFinder.com →

Before we wrap up, I wanted to share some timely opportunities I've been tracking (courtesy of our friends at AwardTravelFinder). These deals won't last long, so let's dive in.

Capital One Miles to Preferred Hotels & Resorts I Prefer: +30% bonus - ends March 31, 2026

Chase Ultimate Rewards to Aer Lingus Avios: +20% bonus - ends March 31, 2026

Chase Ultimate Rewards to British Airways Avios: +20% bonus - ends March 31, 2026

Chase Ultimate Rewards to Iberia Avios: +20% bonus - ends March 31, 2026

Chase Ultimate Rewards to Wyndham: +30% bonus - ends March 31, 2026

Citi ThankYou Rewards to Avianca LifeMiles: +25% bonus - ends April 18, 2026

Citi ThankYou Rewards to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club: +30% bonus - ends April 18, 2026

Rove Miles to Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) EuroBonus: +20% bonus - ends April 08, 2026

Airline programs:

American Airlines (AAdvantage®): 40% discount at 2.26¢ (expires April 24, 2026)

Etihad (Guest): 35% discount at 2.08¢ (expires April 24, 2026)

JetBlue (TrueBlue): 125% bonus at 1.43¢ (expires April 18, 2026)

Lufthansa (Miles & More): 50% bonus at 1.39¢ (expires March 31, 2026)

Southwest Airlines (Rapid Rewards): 50% discount at 1.5¢ (expires April 04, 2026)

Hotel programs:

Hyatt (World of Hyatt): 20% discount at 2.08¢ (expires April 07, 2026)

Leading Hotels of the World (Leaders Club): 100% bonus at 6.0¢ (expires April 03, 2026)

These are the top credit card welcome bonuses we're tracking. Offers change frequently - see all cards.

Business Platinum Card: 200,000 points after spending $20,000 in 3 months ($895/yr)

Chase Sapphire Reserve: 125,000 points after spending $6,000 in 3 months ($795/yr)

American Express Gold Card: 100,000 points after spending $6,000 in 6 months ($325/yr)

Business Gold Card: 100,000 points after spending $15,000 in 3 months ($375/yr)

Friday Flight Deals finds the best flight deals when paying cash beats using points.

Browse all deals at FridayFlightDeals.com →