Total credit cards now at 71.7 m, highest in 21 months

India’s banking system reported net additions of approximately 1.5 million credit cards in February, up 165% y-o-y taking the total base to 71.7 million, the highest in the past 21 months, according to brokerage Motilal Oswal.

Spends on credit cards increased by strong 43% y-o-y during the month and the outstanding number grew by about 16% y-o-y.

Axis Bank acquired around 248,000 of the new cards and, together with HDFC Bank, was among the best performers during the month. Interestingly, Citibank saw a fall of around 7,000 cards in its base; Standard Chartered Bank and American Express too reported a drop in their card bases. Media reports have suggested that Axis Bank is looking to acquire Citibank’s retail business in India.

HDFC Bank continues to remain the market leader although the competition is keen. Axis Bank’s strong performance resulted in the lender gaining 58 basis points y-o-y in market share in outstanding cards to 12% in February.

from "Banking & Finance News: Banking & Finance News Today, Indian Banking & Finance News, World Banking & Finance News Today - The Financial Express " | The Financial Express https://ift.tt/BHhPsjU