July per-credit card spending slips 2.4% Y-o-Y, issuances outpace transaction

The growth in per-credit card spending intensity experienced a contraction in July 2026, with industry-wide per-card spending dropping 2.4 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to ₹16,976 due to a high base in the same period in the previous fiscal, a CareEdge Ratings report showed. Despite a sequential rebound of 2.3 per cent month-on-month (M-o-M), average spending per card continues to face downward pressure as the pace of card issuance outpaces aggregate transaction volume growth.

 

The credit card industry saw ₹2.08 trillion in spending, crossing ₹2 trillion continuously for three months in a row. Going ahead, per-card spending is expected to strengthen as festive-season demand gathers pace. However, the sustainability of this recovery will depend on issuers' ability to activate recently acquired customers and translate a rapidly expanding card base into higher transaction volumes.

 

"This divergence suggests industry growth is increasingly driven by customer acquisition, while the spending intensity of new cardholders has yet to converge with that of the existing customer base,” the CareEdge report said. 

 

Per-card spending for private sector banks (PVBs) fell by 6.4 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹17,308, despite showing a 4.1 per cent MoM recovery. In contrast, public sector banks (PSBs) recorded a 12 per cent Y-o-Y increase in per-card spending to ₹15,767, even as sequential monthly spends dipped 3.5 per cent M-o-M. Foreign Banks (FBs) maintained the highest spending intensity, surging 18.7 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹23,216 per card.

 

“Foreign banks continue to exhibit higher spending intensity as portfolio rationalisation and a shrinking card base have concentrated spending among higher-value cardholders,” analysts added.