Mumbai: E-commerce marketplace Flipkart and Axis Bank have partnered to launch an exclusive co-branded credit card, powered by Mastercard. The credit card offers customers best-in-class benefits and unlimited cashback on all spends, online and offline. This partnership is the latest effort from Flipkart, Axis Bank, and Mastercard to improve access to credit and further expand the fast developing credit card ecosystem in India.
The credit card ecosystem in India is growing at a fast pace and holds immense promise with regards to penetration and acceptance. While most Indians have accessed some form of informal credit, there are only an estimated 49 million credit cards in circulation. Estimates from CIBIL suggest that while there are some 220 million credit-worthy Indians, a full one third of them have not yet been tapped by formal financial institutions. Further, only 72 million of this base are considered ‘credit active’, having a live account with a bank or lending body.
The Flipkart-Axis Bank Credit Card is designed to cater to both credit-worthy Indians, as well as sections of the population who have not accessed formal credit before, through Axis Bank & Flipkart’s extensive pan-India network and distribution reach, and Mastercard’s market leadership in co-brand card programs and payment technology. The card will be available for select users in July, with plans to open the program to all customers over the coming weeks. Customers can also experience a seamless journey with this proposition, from instant card issuance to transaction completion.
Under this program, customers can earn best-in-class returns on their card spends via cashback that is auto credited every month in customer’s statement, thereby ensuring that they will be able to see tangible return on their everyday spends. As part of the industry-leading value proposition, the companies have partnered with renowned third-party merchants across key categories where customers are likely to use credit cards. These include MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, Uber, PVR, Gaana, Curefit and Urban Clap, providing unmatched benefits. Card holders will also get four complimentary lounge visits across airports in India. The Flipkart-Axis Bank Credit Card will also offer customers extra savings on EMI spends on the Flipkart platform, on all tenures.
“At Flipkart, we believe in putting the customer at the centre of all our endeavours, while also generating shared value for all stakeholders in the ecosystem. Through this co-branded credit card, in partnership with Axis Bank and Mastercard, we are reiterating our commitment to driving access to formal credit in India with an offering that will benefit the customer the most. Meaningful growth in India will be driven through expanding the credit fold, and we are happy to continue playing a role in that by helping millions of Indians fulfill their aspirations without the burden of financial constraints,” said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO of the Flipkart Group.
“Axis Bank is a full suite payments player and we continue to build on innovation led partnership models. Our focus is to offer product propositions that are not only attractive, but also cater to the growing needs of our customers. ‘New India’, wants the best of everything – be it quality, choice, service or convenience and we plan to tap these market segments, with smart deals and benefits that have been worked out keeping in mind the myriad aspirations of the new Indian customer. In this effort, we are glad to partner with Flipkart and Mastercard, to further expand credit access and deepen our geographic reach targeting a larger customer segment,” said Amitabh Chaudhry, MD&CEO, Axis Bank.
Ari Sarker, Co-President, Asia -Pacific, Mastercard, said, “Though 90% of transactions in India are still processed in cash, we are seeing a sizable and undeniable shift towards digital payments. This has been spurred by the booming popularity of online shopping and e-commerce – which now account for over 40% of all digital payments in India – and are poised to grow even further in line with the Government of India’s efforts to drive digital adoption across the ecosystem. At Mastercard, we have been actively committed to enabling this drive towards a Digital India. In launching this compelling new card, we have brought our global leadership in technology, co-brand card programs and analytics to bear in ensuring that cardholders can enjoy a more intuitive, valuable, efficient and safer payments experience. We are honored to partner Flipkart and Axis Bank in accelerating the exciting transformation of India’s digital payments landscape.”
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