Top 10 Most Expensive Credit Card Transactions
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Nowadays, a credit card is a very normal thing that most people pull out of their wallets to purchase various things. In fact, in many cases, there are people who own not just one but several credit cards. From buying groceries at the market, paying a product or service online, to downloading the hottest tablet or mobile app of the moment, we use credit cards for faster transactions or if we are short of cash at the moment.
Indeed, credit cards have become part of our daily lives, ever since they have been issued as far back as the 1920's in the United States. We are so enamored with the allure of credit cards that some of us have even made shopping splurges with credit cards, often costing us thousands of dollars in credit card transactions.
But have you wondered what the most expensive credit card transactions are? These credit card purchases are not your ordinary purchases that only cost hundreds, or even a few thousands. These transactions are outrageous that an average Joe would say, “Wow! That credit card bill is outrageous!”
Here are some of the most outrageous credit card transactions in human history. To be sure, these credit card transactions are based on published newspaper and online reports. Some spend lavish credit card transactions with utmost secrecy and privacy, while others, such as in this list, use their credit cards outrageously without hesitation.
10. A night out that costs $157,000
How much should a night out cost? For the Boston Bruins, it may cost a lot. In fact in 2011, after winning the Stanley Cup, the team celebrated at a bar and accumulated a total of almost $157,000 on their bar tab. Much of the cost came from an Ace of Spades Midas champagne bottle which cost an insane $100,000. The other expenses included: 35 Jager bombs, nine Grey Goose bottles, and a $25,000 tip. When a copy of the bill went online, the team’s camp said that the bar’s owners helped with the bar tab.
9. Another night out $189,375
What is with sports and music celebrities and their night outs? Rapper and actor Drake threw a lavish party for music mogul and rapper Lil Wayne in 2010. The bill for that night? It cost an insane amount of $189,375 and was practically spent on drinks alone such as Dom Perignon, Grey Goose, and Veuve Clicquot.
When asked by the press, Drake would not say if he paid the outrageous bill or his record label.
8. Nicolas Cage, $276,000 for a dinosaur skull
Nicolas Cage outbid fellow movie celebrity Leonardo DiCaprio on a dino skull. The cost was $276,000. No explanation was given what Cage wanted to do with the giant skull or where he would keep the artifact.
7. The $300,000 diamond from a mobile app
Somebody with lots of money in his or her credit card bought a diamond through a mobile app. The cost? $300,000. The buyer, who was not named for privacy issues, used his or her linked credit card to buy that diamond.
6. Bar tab for $321,000
The Boston Bruins and Drakes of the world would have to give it up to Alex Hope when it comes to bar tabs. In 2012, the London currency trader spent over $320,000 for expensive champagnes and Grey Goose to treat his friends and complete strangers, who were given their own bottles worth $750. Hope’s tips amounted to $30,000.
However, Hope was charged last April for an unauthorized investment scheme worth $7.7 million.
5. Flowers for $450,000
How much do you love flowers? Apparently if you are Sir Elton John, you are willing to spend as high as $450,000. In a 20-month period, he used his credit cards to buy flowers that amounted to $450,000. When John was asked why he spent so much money on flowers, he simply responded: “Well, I like flowers.”
4. One bottle of beer for $500,000
How much would you pay for a single bottle of beer? Would you pay $500,000 for a single bottle? This is probably the holy grail of all beers.
One intact and quality sealed bottle of the rare and precious Samuel Allsopp’s Arctic Ale from the 1850's precisely amounted to that. The Arctic Ale was a beer brewed particularly for the Arctic expedition of Sir Edward Belcher in 1852. The bottle was sealed and kept in top quality. A handwritten note came along with the beer, explaining the bottle’s history and brew.
With photographs and the full name on the eBay listing, the rare ale’s second auction closed with a $503,300 bid. The bottle was earlier posted on eBay with the name incorrectly spelled. It was bought by a collector from Tulsa, Oklahoma for $304. The collector listed the bottle again on the site, this time with the correct spelling of the name. The result? 157 bidders with an outstanding sale price of $503,300.
Allsop’s Artic Ale beer is probably the oldest and rarest bottle of beer known in existence.
3. A humidifier for $2,000,000
Our top three in the list spent millions of cash using their credit cards. Third on the list was singer Celine Dion who bought a humidifier worth $2 million during a stay in a hotel room in Las Vegas. She bought the humidifier, which usually costs from $25 to as high as $100 and simply keeps the room moist by generating mist, to protect her vocal chords while she was sleeping. Apparently, Dion cannot afford to get sick, especially if it will involve her lungs, so she needed the highest quality humidifier.
2. A gift for $2.5 million dollars
How much would you pay for a gift? The most expensive gift paid using a credit card was probably made by American businessman and philanthropist Eli Broad. Other mortals like us merely spend hundreds of dollars for a gift. But not Broad. In case you have not heard of Broad, he transformed Sun Life Insurance Company of America in the 1970's from just a small insurance company (which he bought for $52 million) to a retirement savings heavyweight SunAmerica after two decades before selling it to the American International Group or AIG (to the tune of $18 billion). He served as the chief executive officer of SunAmerica, which has become an AIG subsidiary until 2000.
In 1995, he used his American Express card to buy a painting at a Sotheby’s auction titled “I… I’m Sorry” by Roy Lichtenstein. The amount he used on his American Express card? A whopping $2.5 million dollars. With his credit card hefty purchase, he also earned outstanding frequent flyer miles of 2.5 million.
He chronicled his decision to buy the painting with his credit card in his memoir, “The Art of Being Unreasonable: Lessons in Unconventional Thinking”.
1. A town for $20 million
Would you use your credit card to buy a town for $20 million? Apparently, if you are a big Hollywood celebrity such as Kim Basinger, you would. In 1989, Basinger used her credit cards to purchase the town of Braselton, Georgia to the cool amount of $20 million. Basinger apparently wanted to make the town into a top tourist attraction which featured a film festival and movie studios. Her plan did not push through when she lost much of her fortune and later sold the town for $1 million.
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