Tag: capital

My Parents Earn Way More Travel Rewards With the Capital One Venture X Business Card

by  on  in Business Card Companies

This column is the second in a series of articles that offer insights into personal experiences with the products and services that you read about on Investopedia every day.

I write about financial products and rewards travel for a living, which makes me the de facto advisor whenever my family has questions about money. It also means that whenever a new or exciting product debuts, I pester them to take a look at the details. It’s how they’ve been able to earn top-tier American Airlines elite status, redeem American Express points for valuable flights, and maximize their online purchases with shopping portals.

So when the Capital One Venture X Business travel rewards credit card launched in September 2023, I raced to tell my parents to apply. My stepmom and dad own a small business that remodels hotels, which means they have a significant amount of monthly business spending. This includes purchases for materials, rent, travel, payroll, and more. So a credit card that offers more rewards and a smaller annual fee was perfect for them.

My Parents Have an American Express Card, But Capital One Offers Them Better Rewards

Switching credit cards meant we first had to compare my parents’ current business credit card to this new one from Capital One.

For years, the Business Platinum Card from American Express has been my parents’ go-to business credit card. It makes sense: The card earns 1.5 American Express Membership Rewards points per dollar spent on eligible construction purchases (among other specific categories) and on any charges of $5,000 or more on the first $2,000,000 spent on those purchases each year. 

American Express


The Amex Business Platinum also earns 5 points per dollar spent on flights and prepaid hotels via Amex Travel and 1 point per dollar on rental cars. This means

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How the Capital One Venture X Business card can unlock valuable rewards for your company

by  on  in Business Card Companies

Small-business owners have enough to worry about without always trying to maximize their credit card rewards. It’s easy enough to choose a card that promises a high sign-up bonus and lots of perks to save you money on expenses or enhance your travel. But when it comes time to redeem those hard-earned points and miles, it can be difficult to know where to start.

That’s where the Capital One Venture X Business Card comes in handy. With the Venture X Business, you’ll enjoy a simple earning structure, flexible redemption options, premium perks and an array of business-centric capabilities that place the card in a league of its own.

Here’s why you should consider the Venture X Business card for your small business.

Flexible redemption options

AJ_WATT/GETTY IMAGES

One of the most powerful aspects of the Venture X Business is the flexibility you have for your rewards — and the most efficient option for busy small-business owners is the purchase eraser feature.

This allows you to use your miles to cover travel purchases that you’ve made on your card in the last 90 days, essentially reimbursing yourself for the expense. Eligible purchases that can be covered with Capital One miles include train tickets, Uber rides and even Airbnb purchases.

You can also cover hotel stays, airfare and rental cars booked outside of Capital One Travel — allowing you to book directly with your favorite travel providers and still enjoy any elite status perks to which you’re entitled. This flexibility is unparalleled when compared to other premium business cards.

However, if you’re already invested in the world of loyalty programs, you also have the option to transfer miles to one of Capital One’s transfer partners. This can help unlock even more value for your rewards — but the important thing is that

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US venture capital giant Sequoia to split off China business

by  on  in Business Financial News

The venture capital giant Sequoia Capital is splitting its China business into a separate entity amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing.

The renowned Silicon Valley group, which made bets on fast-growing tech companies such as TikTok parent ByteDance and Alibaba, said on Tuesday it would run its Chinese business as a “completely independent” entity from its US operation.

The Chinese arm will give up the Sequoia name and instead be called HongShan, a romanisation of its Chinese name, which means redwood.

The VC group will also separate its Indian and south-east Asian business into a third entity, it said, adding that the changes would take place by March next year.

Roelof Botha, managing partner of Sequoia Capital, said in an interview that a decision to break up was taken in the past few months. “It really was a very complicated decision. Over the years, we have reassessed the cost-benefit trade-off of this arrangement and whether it was the right structure for the firm. We realised it was time for this.”

Neil Shen, the billionaire founder of Sequoia China, told the Financial Times: “There’s much less in common now” between the different Sequoia entities. He said conversations about splitting the businesses “have been evolving over the last two to three years”.

The split marks an end to one of the most successful US-China investing alliances. It has reaped rewards for the American mother ship and seeded generations of Chinese tech companies since Shen launched Sequoia China in 2005 as an arm of Sequoia Capital.

Shen has raised billions of dollars from US investors as recently as last year and has been confronted with the delicate task of investing in Beijing’s priority areas such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence, while staying on the right side of Washington’s push to introduce controls

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Capital Small Finance Bank eyes Rs 14,000 crore of total business in FY24

by  on  in Business Financial News

Capital Small Finance Bank Limited is looking at its total business rising over Rs 14,000 crore by the end of current financial year on the back of growth in its advances led by MSME loans and mortgages. The Jalandhar-headquartered bank has also plans to expand its branch network by opening 20 more branches in the northern region. Capital Small Finance Bank started operations as the country’s first small finance bank in April, 2016 after conversion from Capital Local Area Bank.

Prior to conversion to the Small Finance Bank, Capital Local Area Bank had been operating since January 14, 2000. In the last financial year, the bank’s total business grew to Rs 12,000 crore with 12 per cent growth. “We are looking to grow our business to more than Rs 14,000 crore (by end of 2023-24),” Capital Small Finance Bank Limited chief financial officer Munish Jain said on Tuesday.

The bank’s total advances stood at Rs 5,507 crore with 17 per cent growth while its deposits stood at Rs 6,560.62 crore with a high share of CASA (current account savings account) book at 41.88 per cent of the total deposits. Jain said the bank’s advances are expected to grow by 22-24 per cent while profitability to rise by 25-30 per cent.

“Growth will be coming from MSME (micro, small and medium enterprises) and mortgages including housing loans,” he said, adding that the bank is also extensively doing agricultural loans. The bank’s asset products primarily include agriculture loans, MSME and trading loans (working capital, machinery loans etc.) and mortgages (housing loans).

The bank also plans to increase its footprint in the northern region where it is mainly concentrated. “We will continue to expand our branch network. A minimum of 20 branches will add more in this fiscal,” said Jain.

The bank presently

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World Bank seeks grants, new capital to fight global crises

by  on  in Business Financial News
Reuters interviews Anna Bjerde, World Bank Managing Director for Operations

[1/3] Anna Bjerde, World Bank Managing Director for Operations, speaks to Reuters during an interview at The World Bank office in Taguig, Metro Manila, Philippines, May 23, 2023. REUTERS/Eloisa Lopez

MANILA, May 23 (Reuters) – The World Bank will press for more grants and new capital from member countries, even as it leverages its balance sheet to scale up lending for responses to climate change and other global crises, its managing director of operations said on Tuesday.

The lender will rally donor support for a newly established crisis facility for the world’s poorest countries that face overlapping global crises, including severe climate events, Anna Bjerde said in an interview.

“We hope to be able to really conclude and have a very strong interest in funding this by the end of the year,” Bjerde said, adding that multiple billions of dollars were needed for the crisis facility.

That facility sits within the International Development Association (IDA) fund, the World Bank’s fund for the poorest countries. The last replenishment was fast depleted by the pandemic.

COVID-19 pushed many poor countries into debt distress as they were expected to continue servicing their obligations in spite of the massive shock to their finances.

Bjerde is hoping for major progress in courting interest in the facility at the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank in Morocco in October.

“We need to really get grants from developed and higher income countries, rich countries, to provide resource transfers to the lower income countries,” she said.

The World Bank, whose 25-member executive board on May 3 elected a new president, wants to increase lending to ensure it can better tackle issues such as climate change, pandemics and conflict.

“We need to continuously work on what we call under the evolution roadmap – a

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