I recently came across a cashback offer that promised 3% back on all business spend. Sounds incredible, right?
Then I did the math. After accounting for foreign exchange fees, the restrictions on what actually qualifies for cashback, and the cap on the cashback, the real benefit was closer to 0.5%.
Here's the thing: cashback is exactly what the word implies – cash given back to you. Which means you're paying something to get that cash back in the first place.
The real question isn't "how much cashback do I get?" It's "how much am I actually paying, and what am I really getting back?"
To help you cut through the marketing noise, I've put together a simple framework to evaluate any cashback program. I call it the C.O.S.T Framework – four critical questions you should ask before getting excited about any cashback offer.
C - Costs: What are you really paying?
This is the most important question, and the one most commonly buried in fine print.
Cashback programs work by taking a small percentage of what you spend and returning it to you. But if the provider is charging you hidden fees elsewhere, that "generous" cashback becomes much less generous very quickly.
The Foreign Exchange Trap
The biggest hidden cost? Foreign exchange fees.
Let's say a bank offers you 3% cashback but charges 5% on foreign transactions. Meanwhile, another provider offers 1% cashback but only charges 2.5% FX fees. Which one is better?
Quick math: On 100 SAR of foreign spend
Competitor: Pay 5 SAR in FX fees, get 3 SAR back = Net cost of 2 SAR
Alternative: Pay 2.5 SAR in FX fees, get 1 SAR back = Net cost of 1.5 SAR
The "lower cashback" option just saved you 25%.
But it gets worse. Some providers don't just charge high FX fees – they also use inflated exchange rates, meaning you're getting fewer foreign currency units per Riyal than the actual market rate. This is essentially charging you twice (if this sounds familiar, it's because we wrote about this recently).
At SiFi, we charge a flat 2.5% FX fee
At SiFi, we charge a flat 2.5% FX fee with no VAT or any other hidden fees on top. More importantly, we use the spot rate – the actual market exchange rate with no markup. What you see is what you pay.
Before getting excited about a cashback rate, always ask: What are the total fees I'm paying? Include FX fees, subscription fees, transaction fees, and any other costs.
O - Opportunities: What spending actually earns cashback?
A 3% cashback rate means nothing if it only applies to a tiny fraction of your spending.
Some programs only offer cashback on:
Foreign transactions (excluding all your domestic local spend)
Specific merchant categories (like dining or travel)
Spending up until certain thresholds
All of this adds friction and reduces the actual value you get.
With SiFi, you earn cashback on both domestic and foreign spend
With SiFi, you earn cashback on all eligible domestic and foreign spend. For domestic spend, we're transparent about which merchant categories are excluded – these are categories where we don't earn interchange fees and therefore can't offer cashback. But we list these clearly upfront, no surprises.
No offers to activate, no minimum thresholds. Every eligible transaction earns you cashback, automatically.
The question to ask: On what percentage of my total business spend will I actually earn this cashback?
S - Stakeholders: Who benefits from the cashback?
Here's something most people don't think about: in a traditional business cashback program, only the company earns rewards. But your employees are the ones making the purchases.
This creates a disconnect. Employees have no incentive to use the corporate card for eligible purchases or to follow expense policies that might maximize cashback. The company gets the reward, but employees do the work.
Enter SiFi's globally unique approach
We've launched a cashback program where businesses can choose how rewards are distributed:
100% to the company (traditional model)
100% to employees (as rewards/incentives)
A custom split between company and employees
This flexibility means you can align incentives properly.
Want to reward employees who consistently follow expense policies? Route their cashback percentage to them.
Want to fund your annual company off-site with accumulated points? Keep 100% at the company level.
The question to ask: Does this program let me reward the people who are actually doing the work?
Earning cashback is great. But what can you actually do with it?
Many programs lock you into "points" with unclear or fluctuating values. You earn 1,000 points but have no idea if that's worth 10 SAR or 100 SAR. Or worse, you can only redeem them for specific items at inflated prices, making the "cashback" worth far less than advertised.
SiFi's flexible approach
With SiFi, you have options: 1 Riyal of spend = 1 SiFi point
Accumulate 100 SAR worth of cashback? You can either:
Take it as cash and use it however you want
Convert to SiFi points (100 points with clear cash equivalent value) and unlock a much larger option space for rewards
When you choose points, your team can:
Purchase flights with our partner programs (like Alfursan)
Book hotels (through partners like Accor)
Use SiFi's rewards card for absolute flexibility – spend accumulated rewards anywhere
The choice is yours. Cash for the company, rewards for employees, or a mix of both.
The question to ask: What is each point actually worth in currency terms, and how many ways can I actually use them?
The Bottom Line: Do the Real Math
When evaluating any cashback program, don't just look at the headline percentage. Ask:
Costs: What are ALL the fees I'm paying? (FX, subscriptions, subscription fees, inflated exchange rates)
Opportunities: What percentage of my total spend actually earns cashback?
Stakeholders: Can I reward my employees, or just the company?
Transferability: Can I take it as cash, convert to flexible rewards, or both?
A 1% cashback program with low fees and universal earning beats a 3% program with hidden costs and restrictions every single time.
At SiFi, we believe transparency should be the default, not a competitive advantage. That's why we're building a cashback program that's straightforward: flat 2.5% FX fees, spot exchange rates, cashback on all eligible spend, flexible distribution between company and employees, and 1:1 Riyal-to-point conversion.