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Ohad Sternberg

The President's Club Paradox: How a Free Trip Cost Millions Until It Didn’t

Presidents Club

The President's Club Paradox: How a Free Trip Cost Millions Until It Didn’t

There’s a $400,000 secret hiding in your incentive trip. Most companies bleed cash funding someone else’s loyalty program without realizing it. This firm didn’t cut costs or perks. They just took control of their points. The result? A P-Club that pays for itself.

The Ghost Economy: How Unredeemed Points Became the World’s Most Profitable Liability

The Ghost Economy: How Unredeemed Points Became the World’s Most Profitable Liability

There’s a trillion-dollar market floating above your head built on points you’ll never redeem. Every swipe fuels it. Every delay funds it. Airlines don’t sell seats; they sell your patience. The Ghost Economy isn’t a reward system - it’s the most profitable debt ever invented 👻

The Miles Multiplier Myth: Why “Double Points” Isn’t Always Double Value

The Miles Multiplier Myth: Why “Double Points” Isn’t Always Double Value

“Double points” sounds like a win. It’s not. Most multipliers are smoke and mirrors - inflated earn rates hiding weak redemptions. The real metric isn’t 2x or 5x. It’s Return on Spend - what your dollar actually yields when you cash those points for real value, not brochure math.

Points & Taxation: What the IRS Doesn’t Tell You About Your Miles

Points & Taxation: What the IRS Doesn’t Tell You About Your Miles

Points aren't free money. They are taxable leverage hiding in plain sight. Earn them wrong, and the IRS calls it income. Use them right, and they become tax-efficient capital. The game isn't just earning and burning - it's knowing when uncle sam wants his slice.

The Chase Sapphire Countdown: Everything You Must Do Before the "Reserve" Revamp on Oct 26

The Chase Sapphire Countdown: Everything You Must Do Before the "Reserve" Revamp on Oct 26

Chase Sapphire Reserve changes on Oct 26. Points, perks, fees - everything is being rewritten. The next few days decide if you secure maximum value or leave thousands of points stranded. Act fast, plan carefully, or risk losing what you’ve earned.

Weekend Edition / Dear Ohad...

Weekend Edition / Dear Ohad...

JetBlue Family Tiles, Qantas & Emirates lounge hacks, United award chart twists, last-minute premium fare spikes, and sneaky mile expirations - this week’s DearOhad tells you what’s genius, what’s trap, and how to protect your points, perks, and sanity in travel.

Your Strike Window: The 48-Hour Premium Award Release

Strategy Saturday

Your Strike Window: The 48-Hour Premium Award Release

There’s a moment, about two days before takeoff, when the entire airline yield system exhales. Corporate no-shows get processed. Fare fences relax. Inventory algorithms stop pretending to be in control. And somewhere in that chaos, a few premium seats quietly surface - often for miles, not money.

CapitalOne Miles: The End of Easy Value (Q4-2025 Field Manual)

CapitalOne Miles: The End of Easy Value (Q4-2025 Field Manual)

CapitalOne built its empire on simplicity: flat earn rates, frictionless redemptions, and marketing that made points feel like cash with wings. That model doesn’t work anymore... Today their miles are fighting for definition in a world where partners are tightening, and arbitrage is vanishing.

Citi "ThankYou" in Q4-2025: When "Strata" Tries to Reforge Loyalty

Citi "ThankYou" in Q4-2025: When "Strata" Tries to Reforge Loyalty

Citi didn’t just rename a rewards card in 2025. It relaunched an entire worldview: "ThankYou" points are no longer a backwater alternative to Chase or Amex. With the Strata family, it’s trying to make its points behave like a modern currency - flexible, timed, and fiercely contested.

Bilt Rewards in Q4-2025: How Renting Became a Loyalty Asset

Bilt Rewards in Q4-2025: How Renting Became a Loyalty Asset

Bilt started as a novel rent reward tool. By Q4-2025, it’s matured into a loyalty infrastructure: embedded in property ecosystems, battling for redemption real estate, and hinting at alliances beyond travel - maybe even with Rakuten.

Amex Membership Rewards: The Power Game That Never Sleeps

Amex Membership Rewards: The Power Game That Never Sleeps

Amex Membership Rewards Program isn’t loyalty - it’s leverage. The points aren’t perks; they’re power waiting to expire. Velocity without precision bleeds value. Time bonuses, target partners, and treat every transfer like a trade. In Q4-2025, you don’t “earn” with Amex... You operate!

Chase Ultimate Rewards: The Loyalty Market You Didn’t See Coming

Chase Ultimate Rewards: The Loyalty Market You Didn’t See Coming

Chase doesn’t reward loyalty anymore; it rewards liquidity. The 1.5¢ safety net is gone, replaced by a live market where points rise, fall, and rot if you hesitate. Ultimate Rewards isn’t a program - it’s a trading floor. And every transfer is a trade that can make (or waste) your margin.