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Money musings, financial commentary plus the rambling wit and
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Eurovision, Mozo style!

By Yash Murthy 16 May 2011 5:10pmbanking, Mozo, UncategorizedTag: > > > > > > > >
If you’re unaware, Eurovision is an annual song contest involving national representatives from across Europe and this yearly combination of power ballads, bloc voting and unadulterated kitsch is one of the highlights of my year! 

In quite the upset, this year’s winner was Azerbaijan, a fact that a former Mozo staffer (who was actually born in the capital, Baku) no doubt relished. Nonetheless, I thought it’d be a good idea to showcase some of the European financial providers we host here on Mozo and see how they’ve been represented in the contest in recent times.

I’ve used ‘Mozo Reviews’, Australia’s only customer review database for financial products, to rank the top providers of European heritage. The ranking is based on the provider’s overall customer rating, a figure calculated as an average of all reviewers’ submissions in the ‘overall rating’ field.

So, without further ado, welcome to Mozo’s Eurovision spectacular!

1. The Netherlands (ING Direct & Rabodirect)

With overall ratings of 8.8 (ING Direct) and 8.5 (Rabodirect) respectively, these Dutch powerhouses are Mozo royalty, both taking home coveted People’s Choice Awards last year on the back of popular and innovative savings and term deposit products. The Dutch Eurovision entrants however, failed to live up to their impressive brethren, coming dead last in the second semi-final. Nonetheless, the singer does manage to sport a nifty Tony Montana-inspired number…

2.  Greece (Beirut Hellenic Bank)

I know Beirut Hellenic Bank originally hails from Cyprus, but as we already have the Bank of Cyprus to come and Hellenic as a term covers Greece, I thought we could blur the geographic boundaries a little – blocs aren’t limited to voting you know! Formerly known as Laiki Bank, Beirut Hellenic bank’s savings and term deposits have gleaned them an overall rating of 7.5 on our site, putting them in second place. As for Greece’s Eurovision number this year, I found it to be a pretty alien combination of genres that didn’t really grab me. I’m clearly no harbinger for European taste however, as Greece managed to come in at 7th overall. Nonetheless, have a squiz at last year’s excellent ‘Opa!’ instead, a personal fave of mine.

3. Germany (Allianz)

A customer rating of 7.4 for heavyweights Allianz has driven Germany into 3rd place on our countdown. Their 2011 Eurovision entry didn’t lack pedigree either – Germany actually came into this year’s Eurovision as reigning champions and hosts and for only the 3rd time in history last winner’s came back to defend her title. Her subdued number this year left her languishing in 10th place, so let’s take a look at the catchy ditty that won her the gong back in 2010.

4. Cyprus (Bank of Cyprus)

With a rating of 6.8, Bank of Cyprus comes in at number 4 this year, despite strong support for their term deposit and bank accounts. Cyprus’ Eurovision entrant was of similar stock, coming in at second-last in semi-final two. It’s well worth watching mind you, if only for the general gravity-defying and the big change-up at 1:17…

5. United Kingdom (Virgin Money)

The big shock comes from the UK. Surprisingly, Branson’s boy’s come in last on our list with a rating of 5.7. Despite Virgin Money’s customer-friendly image, customers seem to be savaging them across the board on both their savings and credit card offerings. It’s a lowly position that’s been shared by their Eurovision counterparts in recent times. The UK came in at 11th this year after coaxing former boy-band superstars, ‘Blue’, to front up. It’s an improvement on last year’s embarrassing last place, but still well short of expectations. Whinging about bloc-voting to no doubt ensue.

Finally, for those curious about the winner’s performance, here’s this year’s winner. Not my cup of tea, but hey, who am I to judge? This one’s for you Nijat.

Inspired to make your voice heard? Go on and review your bank here!

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Virgin Money Returns

By Yash Murthy 28 July 2010 2:20pmbanking, competition, Credit cards, Savings accountsTag: > > > > > >

Richard Branson was in Sydney yesterday, bearing the news that Virgin Money is relaunching its consumer banking arm. Earmarked by Branson as “classic Virgin territory” due to the domination of the Big 4 in the marketplace, Virgin Money has declared its intentions, in alliance with Citibank, to make a ‘fair profit’ on the back of “simple and fairly priced products”. The first cabs off the rank in this quest to take on the Big 4 are in the credit card and savings account market.

Virgin Saver
The Virgin Saver is Virgin’s online savings account, a no fees account with a variable introductory rate of 6.75% for 4 months that falls back to 5.35%. These numbers put it right up there with the top 5 standard and promotional savings account rates in the market and it’s a great product, particularly as it lacks the deposit and withdrawal conditions held by some products.

Virgin No Annual Fee Credit Card
The Virgin No Annual Fee Credit Card is Virgin’s ‘no frills’ card. No annual fee and no rewards of any note. It comes with an introductory offer of 2.9% on balance transfers for six months and an ongoing purchase rate of 16.95%. Whilst promoted as “simple and fairly priced”, there are only 44 interest-free days and the card features the sneaky trick we’ve previously highlighted of reverting the balance transfer to the much higher cash advance rate of 20.99% as well.

If you plan on carrying a debt, using our credit card comparison table one can see that there are other low rate and low fee cards that could save you over $500 over 3 years on an average balance of $3000, taking into account the interest and fee costs. However, if you plan on paying off your balance in full each month, this card will cost you nothing, and is well worth picking up for those who enjoy things like the choice of card colour and Virgin’s customer service.

Virgin Flyer Credit Card
The real headline grabber here is the last product on the list, the Virgin Flyer Card, its Platinum frequent flyer card. And it’s a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde proposition.

What Virgin is hoping will sell this product is the flight rewards. The biggest selling point is that four times a year, you’ll get 2 for 1 flights on Virgin Blue. It’s a great feature that’s sure to appeal to many. Factor in the best earn rate for velocity points without getting an Amex, for the first $1,500 monthly spend anyway, and it’s a very good rewards card. Using our credit card Rewards Revealer, at the Australian average spend of $14000, it’s the clear leader once you factor in the free flights. For the high rollers looking for a Platinum Card, those spending $50,000 a year would only derive more value from the Citibank Emirates Platinum card, taking annual fees and free flights into account.

It must be noted however, that as a day-to-day credit card, it’s a pricey option. The rates’ conspicuous absence from Virgin’s release is a signpost to the card’s steep nature. With a rate of 20.99% for both purchases and cash advances and a balance transfer rate of 6.9% for 6 months that reverts to 20.99%, it’s one of the most expensive cards on the market. Throw in the interest free period of only 44 days and you can definitely say it’s not a card to accumulate debt on.

The Verdict
The Virgin Saver looks a winner, particularly given its simplicity. The No Annual Fee card is a good basic card for those who pay off their balance in full each month, but there are better options for those who like to rack up a debt. Again, the Virgin Flyer card also isn’t one for the debt accumulators, however it makes up for it with an excellent flight rewards program. With home loans yesterday stated to be in their sights, it’ll be interesting to see where Virgin goes next.

Compare all savings accounts and rewards credit cards at mozo.com.au

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