Yes Bank Pop-Club Review: The 10% 'Online' Reward Card?

The Comeback Consolation Prize

After being quiet for years, Yes Bank has launched a co-branded card with POP, a rewards-first fintech app. The pitch is aggressive: 10% Rewards on Online Spends.

For a card that costs virtually nothing (₹399/year, often waived), this sounds insane. The SBI Cashback gives you 5%. Swiggy HDFC gives you 10% only on Swiggy. Does Yes Bank really give you 10% on everything?

The Short Answer: Yes, but in 'POPcoins'.

red Benefit 1: The 10% Reward Rate

If you shop online (Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, etc.), you earn 10 POPcoins for every ₹100 spent.

• Online Speed: 10% Return (in Coins).
• Offline Speed: 2% Return (in Coins).
• UPI Spends: 5% Extra (if used via POP UPI App).

The Math: Spending ₹10,000 online gets you 1,000 POPcoins.
The Catch: What is 1 POPcoin worth?

This is where the "Brutally Honest" part comes in. POPcoins are not Cash. You cannot credit them to your statement (like SBI). You have to redeem them on the POPclub App for products from brands like The Man Company, mCaffeine, Bewakoof, etc.

• Best Case Value: 1 Coin = ₹0.25 (If redeemed for vouchers/products).
• Real World Return: 10 Coins * ₹0.25 = 2.5% Effective Return.

So, while they say "10% Rewards", the monetary value is closer to 2.5% to 3%. Still decent for an entry-level card, but not the 10% instant cash you might imagine.

Benefit 2: The UPI Power (RuPay Network)

This card is issued on the RuPay network, which means you can link it to UPI apps.

If you use the POP UPI App to scan and pay, you get an additional 5% POPcoins. This is a clever way to drive adoption of their app.

Benefit 3: Comparison with Similar Cards

Feature	Yes Bank Pop-Club	SBI Cashback	Swiggy HDFC
Fee	₹399 (Waived @ ₹1.5L)	₹999 (Waived @ ₹2L)	₹500 (Waived @ ₹2L)
Online Return	10% (Coins)	5% (Real Cash)	5% (Cashback)
Effective Value	~2.5%	5.0%	5.0%
Lounge	None	None	None

The Drawbacks

1. Ecosystem Lock-in: You are forced to use the POPclub app to redeem rewards. If you don't like D2C brands (like mCaffeine or minimalist), these coins are useless to you.
2. No Utility/Rent Rewards: Like most cards, these categories are excluded.
3. Forex Markup: Standard 3.5%. Do not use this card abroad.

Conclusion: Comparison with the "Big Boys"

Is it better than SBI Cashback? No. Cash is King. 5% Cash > 10% Coins.
Is it better than HDFC Millennia? Maybe, if you shop across many brands and love D2C products.

Verdict: Get this card if:

• You want a RuPay Credit Card for UPI.
• You shop a lot of D2C brands (skincare, fashion).
• You want a low-fee (or Lifetime Free offer) card to build credit history.