• ✈️ Airline News: United replaces top MileagePlus leadership, hires Apple Card veteran to run loyalty program

• 💳 Credit Card News: Bilt unveils three new credit cards—no annual fee Blue, $95 Obsidian, and $495 Palladium—with massive rent rewards changes

• 🏨 Hotel News: Hilton launches Apartment Collection brand for furnished rentals with Honors earning and redemption

• 🚨 Deal Alert: Citi Strata Elite first-year value reaches $2,700 with credits—here's the math breakdown

Estimated read time: 6 minutes and 30 seconds

Three things jumped out at me from yesterday's news—and they all point to major shifts in how loyalty programs will operate in 2026.

United just replaced its entire MileagePlus leadership team with veterans from Apple Card and Delta. Bilt completely overhauled its credit card portfolio and rent payment system. And Hilton is getting into the apartment rental business.

Each of these stories tells us something important about where travel rewards are headed. Let's break them down.

Which former airline executive is United hiring to oversee loyalty strategy?

A) Gary Leff from DeltaB) Vasu Raja from AmericanC) Scott Kirby from DeltaD) Ed Bastian from Delta

The answer is waiting near the bottom... keep scrolling.👇

United Airlines just announced a complete reshuffling of its MileagePlus leadership. And if you're a frequent flyer with United, you should be paying attention.

Richard Nunn, who was hired in May 2023 as CEO of the loyalty platform and to launch Kinective Media, is out. So is Luc Bondar, the vice president of loyalty who ran MileagePlus day-to-day for nearly 10 years.

In their place? United is bringing in talent from Apple Card and Delta—two programs known more for branding and commercial success than member value.

The most interesting hire is an Apple Card veteran who'll now run loyalty strategy at United. If you remember the Apple Card launch, it was all polish and marketing—beautiful design, slick integration, heavy Goldman Sachs backing—but the actual rewards structure was nothing special.

That's the playbook United seems to be adopting: maximize revenue extraction, perfect the commercial partnerships, and make it all look premium while offering less actual value to members.

United is also bringing in Vasu Raja—yes, that Vasu Raja from American Airlines—to work on monetizing passengers through inflight advertising. He's the executive who became the face of American's controversial distribution strategy and the gutting of AAdvantage value.

Here's what this tells me: United is doubling down on loyalty as a profit center, not a customer benefit. The days of generous award availability and reasonable redemption rates may be numbered.

For all our United coverage, including how these changes might affect your elite status and award bookings, check out our dedicated United page.

Remember when we talked about Bilt dumping Wells Fargo? Well, yesterday we got the full picture of what's replacing it—and it's a massive transformation.

Bilt is launching three new credit cards in partnership with Cardless: the no annual fee Bilt Blue Card, $95 annual fee Bilt Obsidian Card, and $495 Bilt Palladium Card.

But the bigger story is what's happening to rent payments and rewards. Bilt is introducing a completely new currency called Bilt Cash, separate from Bilt Points, that can be used for rent and mortgages.

The Bilt Palladium Card is clearly designed to be the hero product. At $495 annually, it offers the highest earning rates in the family and comes with premium perks.

Here's what caught my attention: Bilt is also partnering with Alaska Airlines through their Atmos Rewards program. You can now earn 3x points on rent by paying a 3% fee. For many cardholders, especially those with high rent payments, this math works out incredibly well.

The question is whether the new Bilt Cash system will be as valuable as the old Bilt Points for rent payments. Early indications suggest it offers dollar-for-dollar value, which could make it a powerful tool for reducing housing costs.

For comparison, if you're also looking at premium travel cards, check out the Chase Sapphire Reserve which offers different but complementary benefits for frequent travelers.

Hilton just announced Apartment Collection by Hilton, a new lodging category for furnished apartments that can be rented short-term or long-term. And yes, you'll be able to earn and redeem Hilton Honors points.

This isn't Hilton building apartments—they're partnering with Placemakr, which already operates furnished apartment accommodations. Hilton is adding about 3,000 new apartments on top of the roughly 10,000 apartment-style units they already have.

Why does this matter? Because it's the first major hotel chain to seriously integrate longer-term stays into their loyalty program. If you're doing a work assignment, a long vacation, or even a temporary relocation, you could now earn points on what would otherwise be a non-earning expense.

Hotel loyalty programs have been looking for ways to capture spending beyond the traditional two-night stay. Marriott tried it with home rentals. Hyatt experimented with extended-stay brands. But Hilton's approach—integrating furnished apartments directly into Honors—could be the model that actually works.

Imagine earning elite night credits and points on a three-month rental. For road warriors trying to maintain status, this could be a game-changer.

Speaking of premium cards with big annual fees, the Citi Strata Elite just got a detailed value breakdown that's hard to ignore.

The card has a $595 annual fee, which sounds steep. But when you add up the first-year credits and benefits, you could be looking at $2,700 in travel value.

Here's how the math works: The card offers substantial travel credits across multiple categories, airport lounge access, and bonus earning rates on specific purchases. If you can actually use all the credits—and that's a big if—the first year becomes incredibly valuable.

After year one, whether you keep it depends on your spending patterns. But for anyone who travels frequently and can maximize the benefits, it's worth running the numbers.

Here's something you need to know if you're traveling through Minneapolis-Saint Paul Airport over the next few weeks: ICE agents will be conducting document checks, including patrolling jet bridges.

According to an airport employee, these checks will happen for three weeks, both before boarding and immediately after landing. This is a post-security enforcement operation that targets travelers at a choke point where they can't easily turn around.

This raises serious questions about travel rights, especially for citizens and lawful permanent residents who shouldn't be subject to document checks when traveling domestically. If you're planning to fly through MSP, factor in extra time and be prepared for potential delays.

For more on airport security procedures and traveler rights, check out our TSA policies coverage.

The answer is B: Vasu Raja from American Airlines. United is bringing him on board to work on inflight advertising monetization—a role that aligns with his commercial focus at American, though his tenure there became controversial as AAdvantage value declined under broader strategy changes he helped implement.

With all these loyalty program leadership changes happening, which airline program do you trust most with your miles right now? Hit reply and let me know—I read every response and I'm genuinely curious about where you're focusing your earning strategy!

That's all for today—see you tomorrow with more miles and points news!

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.

Airline programs:

Hotel programs: