[Update: FNBO has answered some of the unknowns about the new card, scroll to the bottom to see]
The title isn’t exactly 100% true, Discover actually has a secured credit card that also gives it’s users free access to a FICO score. Although to apply for that card you have to have first of been denied for the regular discover it card and then receive a targeted offer for the secured version.
FNBO has released a new secured card called “Kickstart” which offers card holders access to their FICO Score (Experian Bankcard Enhanced 2008 Edition). This is fantastic news for people with a less than stellar credit history. They’ll be able to see the same score that lenders look at when they apply for future products (a lot of the other free FICO scores on the market offer classic scores rather than this industry specific score).
It’s not all roses with this new card though, there is an annual fee of $29 and a 20% interest rate. It always shocks me how high the interest rates are on some secured cards, after all the card issuer is really only lending you your own money again. There are also plenty of other secured cards on the market with no annual fee.
There are still a few unknowns about this new card. For example, will it graduate to an unsecured card or will you have to apply for one? Can you add additional funds without a hard pull on your credit report? These unknowns have now been answered, see below for their responses via twitter.
@Drofcredit We would need to complete an application to request Secured to Unsecured.
— First National Bank (@FNBOmaha) April 10, 2014
@Drofcredit Currently, we do not offer the ability to graduate from Secured to Unsecured.
— First National Bank (@FNBOmaha) April 10, 2014
@Drofcredit Correction- We do pull a bureau to add additional funds. Sorry about that.
— First National Bank (@FNBOmaha) April 10, 2014
To summarize:Â
- Hard pull to add funds
- Doesn’t graduate to an unsecured card
It’s great to see a secured card with a free FICO score, but it’s disappointing that this card falls short of the better secured cards on the market.
What are your thoughts? Did FNBO do a good job on this new card?
