Commonwealth Bank has switched its card rewards to a new currency. CommBank Awards closed on September 29, 2026, and from October 1 eligible customers earn CommBank Yello Points instead. The new points can move to Qantas Frequent Flyer, Velocity Frequent Flyer and Qatar Airways Privilege Club.
The changes are set out in CommBank's newsroom post on the switch, published on September 9. Here is what Awards members need to know.
What happened to Awards points
CommBank says eligible customers' unredeemed Awards points convert at one Awards point to one Yello Point. The converted points appear in the CommBank app and NetBank in stages from October 1. Eligible customers move over on their own and do not need to act.
Customers who are not eligible for Yello have a different path. CommBank says they can ask to have their Awards points paid out as cash by December 31, 2026. If they do not, the bank holds the points for up to two years. They can be redeemed in that time if the customer becomes eligible.
How Yello Points are earned
The big change is where points come from. Awards points came from credit card spending. CommBank says Yello Points can be earned across everyday banking, including home loans, savings, cards and insurance, as well as card spend.
How many points you earn depends on your Yello tier. CommBank's Yello changes page lists four tiers:
- Yello: an eligible transaction account and five or more eligible transactions.
- Yello Plus: 15 or more eligible transactions and an eligible balance of $500 for 15 or more days, unless you are under 26.
- Yello Gold: 15 or more eligible transactions and either a $50,000 eligible balance or combined CommBank home loans under $1 million.
- Yello Diamond: 15 or more eligible transactions and either a $250,000 eligible balance or combined CommBank home loans of $1 million or more.
CommBank says earn rates vary by tier and that caps apply. It does not list the card earn rates for each tier on that page, so check the terms for your own card.
Where the points can go
Yello Points can be used for gift cards, travel, cash, shopping and transfers to loyalty programs. The airline transfer partners at launch are Velocity, Qatar Airways and Qantas. CommBank lists Cathay as "coming soon." CommBank says fees, eligibility rules and terms apply to transfers. It does not publish the transfer rates on its changes page.
Velocity has its own announcement of the CommBank partnership, dated August 18. It says eligible customers can convert Yello Points to Velocity Points from October 1, 2026. Velocity's Reward Seats start from 5,900 points one way, plus taxes, fees and carrier charges.
What to check before you transfer
Because the rates and fees are not on the main pages, the order of steps matters:
- Log in and find your Yello tier and point balance.
- Read the transfer rate and any fee shown for Qantas, Velocity or Qatar.
- Price the flight you want in that airline's program.
- Work out how many Yello Points the flight needs at that rate.
- Compare it with the cash price or a travel booking through Yello.
A transfer fee can change the math on small transfers. It is often better to move points once, for a booked trip, than in many small batches.
Where this fits
Points Frog has program pages for Qantas Frequent Flyer, Velocity and Qatar Airways Privilege Club. They show how we value each airline currency. They do not yet cover Yello Points.
My take
If you held CommBank Awards points, log in now and check that they converted. Then look up the real transfer rate and fee before you plan a trip around them. A points currency is only as good as the rate it gets you, and that number is in your account, not in the headline.