Surge in Credit Card Spending Observed in January
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Synopsis
In January 2025, credit card spending in India increased by 10.8% to Rs 1.84 lakh crore, with HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank leading the growth. SBI and Axis Bank, however, reported declines. UPI continues to dominate digital payments, enhancing the overall financial landscape.
Key Takeaways
- Credit card spending rose by 10.8% in January 2025.
- HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank saw the highest growth.
- SBI and Axis Bank experienced declines in spending.
- UPI's share of digital payments surged to 83% in 2024.
- The number of credit cards has doubled over the past five years.
Mumbai, Feb 25 (NationPress) Consumer spending via credit cards has surged by 10.8% year-on-year, reaching Rs 1.84 lakh crore in January 2025, as per the latest RBI data. Notably, HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank witnessed the most significant rises.
The foremost credit card provider, HDFC Bank, reported a 15.91% increase year-on-year, totaling Rs 50,664 crore for the month, while ICICI Bank experienced a 20.25% jump to Rs 35,682 crore. Conversely, SBI saw a 6% decline to Rs 28,976 crore, and spending from Axis Bank customers decreased by 0.45% to Rs 20,212 crore in January.
The average expenditure per card for the month was Rs 16,910, which shows a 1.09% increase compared to the same month last year.
HDFC Bank issued 2,99,761 new credit cards in January, while SBI Cards added 2,34,537 new cards, and ICICI Bank issued 1,83,157 new cards. However, Axis Bank saw a net decline of 14,862 credit card additions during the month.
Over the past five years, the number of credit cards has more than doubled to approximately 10.8 crore, while the number of debit cards has remained relatively stable, according to RBI data.
Overall digital transactions in India have seen a year-on-year increase of 11.1% as of September 2024, per the RBI's index tracking online transaction adoption.
The RBI has also emphasized in a recent report that UPI has been the largest contributor to the expansion of digital payments in India, owing to its practicality and user-friendliness.
The report indicates that UPI's share of total digital payments in the country surged from 34% in 2019 to an impressive 83% in 2024, showcasing a remarkable CAGR (cumulative average growth rate) of 74% over the past five years.
In contrast, the share of other payment methods such as RTGS, NEFT, IMPS, credit cards, and debit cards in digital payments volume has decreased from 66% to 17% during the same timeframe, as stated in the report.
On a macro scale, the volume of UPI transactions soared from 375 crore in 2018 to 17,221 crore in 2024, while the overall transaction value skyrocketed from Rs 5.86 lakh crore in 2018 to Rs 246.83 lakh crore in 2024. This reflects a five-year compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 89.3% and 86.5% in terms of transaction volume and value, respectively, as per the report.
