E.SUN Commercial Bank said it will cap monthly rebates on overseas ATM cash advances at NT$800 per cardholder through December, after customers doubled foreign withdrawal runs during October’s yen volatility and U.S. shutdown headlines.
The lender told card members in an app notice that the rebate ceiling applies to Visa- and Mastercard-branded credit lines, not debit cards tied to New Taiwan dollar savings accounts. Cash-advance fees remain 3.5 percent of each withdrawal plus a NT$100 handling charge, unchanged from prior terms.
Why withdrawals spiked
Joint Credit Information Center data E.SUN cited in a regulatory filing showed aggregate overseas cash-advance balances among its clients rose 22 percent between September and October. Product executives blamed a combination of stronger U.S. dollar demand before holiday travel and hedge-seeking behavior when local margin calls forced investors to raise liquidity quickly.
Revolving interest income at E.SUN still grew month on month, but the bank said promotional rebates were eating into margins on high-spend travelers who previously concentrated spending in Japan and Southeast Asia.
How other issuers are responding
Competitors including CTBC and Taishin have not matched the NT$800 cap publicly, though several trimmed signup bonuses on cash-advance-heavy promotions in internal memos reviewed by industry groups. The Bankers Association of the Republic of China plans to discuss whether standardized disclosure on overseas ATM pricing is needed before the Lunar New Year travel peak.
Consumer advocates said caps alone will not stop desperate borrowers from stacking cash advances across multiple cards. They urged the Financial Supervisory Commission to require real-time SMS alerts when a cardholder exceeds three overseas withdrawals in 24 hours.
What cardholders should check
E.SUN said members can still earn unlimited mileage on qualifying retail spend and that the rebate cap does not apply to contactless transit purchases in Japan or South Korea. Cardholders who need larger cash buffers for business travel can apply for a temporary limit raise with documentary proof, subject to credit review.
The bank will reassess the cap in January based on foreign-exchange volatility and charge-off rates on revolving balances.