Remember – if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Always do your research before committing to anything, since the terms & conditions vary so significantly from card to card. Sadly, some card issuers have become sly to the whole arbitrage game and these days not all of them let you ‘overpay’ or acquire a positive balance. In William’s case, for example, the HillaryCard people may simply refuse to accept ObamaCard’s money, so he should check with both card companies before he makes any rash decisions.

At the time of writing, one major Card issuer that hasn’t cracked down on arbitrage (yet!) is Citibank. They will actually cut you a check for the amount of the balance transfer amount – the idea being that would then use this check to pay off a debt on one of your other cards. An arbitrager would, of course, simply deposit this check into a high yeild savings account and could start earning interest immediately. Because of it’s suitability for stoozing, in arbitrage slang these types of cards  are known as a ‘Super Balance Transfer’ card. If you’re located in the UK, a popular SBT card is the Visa ‘Egg‘.

A word of caution though – Citinank surely knows that by doing this they are leaving the door open for arbitragers, yet they continue to do it anyway. Why? Simply because many (if not most) wannabe arbitragers slip up somewhere along the line and wind up losing their cushy promotional rate. Be advised that you’ll need to always be on your guard – and if you’re not willing to go over your T&C with a fine-tooth comb, credit card arbitrage may not be for you.

You can check out a list of Citibank’s balance transfer cards here.

Finally, remember the 3 golden rules of arbitrage:

1. Always remember to meet the minimum monthly repayments.

2. NEVER use any of your BT cards for purchases (you may even wish to consider cutting them up or packing them away).

3. Make sure you repay the BT card at least one month before your introductory offer expires.

Related posts:

1. Credit Card Arbitrage (Pt. 2)
2. The wonderful world of Credit Card Arbitrage! (Pt. 1)
3. Rebate or Bonus – What’s in a Word?
4. Tom’s Final post: A Dollar Here, A Dollar There…
5. 5 Goofy Reasons to Rack Up Credit Card Debt