Indian Economy News

Indians with ticket to travel give credit card spends a boost

  • IBEF
  • June 26, 2025

Holiday travel gave a boost to India’s credit card market in May 2025, with spending reaching Rs. 1,90,000 crore (US$ 22.10 billion), reflecting a 3% increase MoM and about 15% YoY, according to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data. This growth followed a strong 17% YoY rise in May 2024. New credit card issuances rebounded to a four-month high, with over 7,60,000 new cards added, comparable to the same period last year. The total number of credit cards in circulation crossed 110 million, marking an 8% YoY increase. Analysts at IDBI Capital expect card spends to remain stable in FY26, driven by consumption, though lenders will focus more on credit quality and cross-selling rather than aggressive new customer acquisition.
Among major issuers, HDFC Bank led new card issuances with 2,74,000, followed by State Bank of India (SBI) Cards with 1,26,000 and Axis Bank with over 1,00,000. On the spending front, SBI Cards saw a 10% sequential increase, Ratnakar Bank Limited (RBL) Bank 9%, and Axis Bank 6%, while HDFC Bank’s credit card spends were flat. However, some lenders faced declines, ICICI Bank’s credit card base fell by over 31,000 cards, and RBL Bank lost more than 40,000. IndusInd Bank’s cautious stance saw fewer than 8,000 new cards added amid internal challenges. Partner at consulting firm Gefion Capital, Mr. Prakash Agarwal, noted that several tier one and mid-sized banks are pulling back after saturating top-tier customers and facing limited success in the middle-income segment, leading to a more cautious approach in customer acquisition.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.

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