Credit card annual fees are soaring past $800. Here’s why people keep paying them—even as perks are harder to come by

In March, Robinhood announced its Platinum credit card, whose perks include generous travel rewards, $250 in annual DoorDash credits, and a free membership to Amazon One Medical. The name of the new card, which has a not-so-low annual fee of $695, is both an homage and a flex: It echoes the card brand made famous by American Express, though Robinhood points out its version is the only one to be “plated in 99.9% pure platinum.”

The offering is the latest splashy option in the fast-expanding world of premium credit cards that are branded not as simple payment tools, but as lifestyles. In this world, “members” enjoy access to concerts and upscale gym memberships, and the opportunity to load up on free goodies from retailers like Lululemon and Apple.

For the well-disciplined, the high-fee cards are a good value thanks to a combination of perks plus rewards for spending that can be cashed in for a host of travel offerings. Even better, all of this comes tax-free, thanks to a legal quirk that treats credit card swag as “redemptions” rather than income.

But not everyone is pleased. In recent months Congress and the White House, mindful of rising credit card debt and growing merchant fees, have renewed a push to pass the Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA), which could make it much harder for card issuers to offer all those perks. That raises a problem for points hunters: Is the go-go era of rewards nearing its end?

Jamie Dimon’s bet pays off

“I wish it was a $400 million loss,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon famously declared in 2017. He was responding to investor complaints over a $200 million earnings charge the bank had incurred from huge sign-up bonuses tied to its Chase........

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