A small change lets PenFed make a lot more money on credit cards

PenFed sent me a new Visa without asking. Why?

In one case, it is “Platinum”. In another it’s “Signature.”

The interchange rates for Signature cards are substantially higher than for Platinum cards. The issuing bank can make a lot more on transactions simply by “upgrading” the customer to Signature. This is virtually no cost, aside from re-issuing the cards. There are a bunch of services that come with Signature status (like concierge), but these are low-use services of marginal value.