35-year-old Shariman Yusof from Petaling Jaya was announced as the grand prize winner of the CIMB Bank MasterCard GRAMMY Awards Usage contest and won himself two return business-class flight tickets to Los Angeles and premium tickets to the GRAMMY Awards show, the exclusive GRAMMY celebration after-party, and GRAMMY Rehearsal “Sneak Preview” Tour. On top of that, he will also be given a complimentary professional makeover. After all, one will have to look the part to mingle and rub shoulders with the biggest names in the music industry!

At the prize presentation ceremony held recently, Jean Yap, Head of Direct Banking & Cards, CIMB Bank said: “We are delighted to have collaborated with MasterCard and bring this priceless experience to our customers. The response was overwhelming. At CIMB Bank, we remain committed to offering exciting and innovative promotions to our discerning customers.”

The contest ran from 1 November 2009 until 31 December 2009. With every RM1,000 spent overseas and charged to one’s CIMB Bank or Direct Access MasterCard, cardholders stood a chance to win fantastic prizes that promise to bring priceless experiences to customers. Winners were randomly picked and were required to answer a simple question.

“I never filled up any forms to enter a contest. Therefore, it came as a wonderful surprise when I learnt that my business trip to Korea, where I charged my expenses to my CIMB Bank MasterCard, would win me this once-in-a-lifetime, exclusive trip to the GRAMMY Awards! Thanks to CIMB Bank and MasterCard, now I can’t wait to get on the plane to attend the GRAMMYs!” an excited Shariman said.

The other top three prizes were luxurious holiday packages to London, Sydney and Phuket, with five-star hotel accommodation, won by Joseph Rocky Gomez, Tan Thiam Hock and Moi Sook Ling respectively.

“A core philosophy of MasterCard is to create unique and unforgettable experiences. We are happy to have collaborated with CIMB Bank to design these unique experiences for our valuable cardholders. This initiative will remind cardholders of the beautiful surprises and potential priceless experiences for using their CIMB MasterCard card,” said Jim Cheah, vice president and senior country manager, Malaysia and Brunei, MasterCard Worldwide.