SBI Card looks at 25% growth in card base

SBI Card, a joint venture of the State Bank of India and GE Capital, is looking at a 25 per cent growth in its card base and around 33 per cent growth in spend in the current fiscal, a top company official said on Thursday.

Aimed at cardless transaction, the credit card issuer is also in a process to develop Host Card Emulation (HCE) technology so that data of a customer's card can be stored in his/her mobile, and can help in the use of mobile for card transactions.

"We grew by 14-15 per cent in terms of number of cards (card base) in the last fiscal and we are looking at a 25 per cent growth this fiscal. We plan to add more than one million cards in the current fiscal," said company CEO Vijay Jasuja.

The credit card insurer - which currently maintains a market share of 15 per cent - has a card base of 3.75 million.

"We have seen the growth in spend at about 33 per cent in the last fiscal and we are looking at a similar growth in terms of spending this year," he said at the launch of SBI Card ELITE, a premium card.

Of the total portfolio, about 85 per cent of its cards is for mass segment while premium segment constitutes the rest, Jasuja said.

"We are working on to develop the HCE technology so that the data of customer's card can be stored in his mobile, not in plastic. Using this technology a user can transact at any NFC (near field communication) terminal with his/her mobile phone," he said.

The card issuer has already come up with co-branded credit cards with Bank of Maharashtra, Karur Vysya Bank, Federal BankAand Lakshmi Vilas Bank. "Co-branding gives us an opportunity to grow further. We are talking with several other banks both public and private for launching of co-branded credit cards," he said.

Asked about the status of GE Capital's proposed exit from the venture, Jasuja said: "The process is on for finding a partner for replacement. It is a decision of the State Bank of India and GE Capital. This is expected to be finalised by September."

--IANS

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