Credit Card Spending Rises 10.8% In January; Led By HDFC & ICICI Bank

Consumer spending through credit cards surged by 10.8% year-on-year, reaching Rs 1.84 lakh crore in January 2025, with HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank witnessing the highest growth, as per RBI data.

HDFC Bank, the country’s largest credit card issuer, recorded a 15.91% annual increase in spending, totaling Rs 50,664 crore for the month.

ICICI Bank followed with a 20.25% jump, reaching Rs 35,682 crore.

In contrast, SBI’s credit card spending declined by 6% to Rs 28,976 crore, while Axis Bank saw a marginal dip of 0.45%, with spending at Rs 20,212 crore.

The average spending per credit card for January stood at Rs 16,910, reflecting a 1.09% rise compared to the same period last year.

In terms of new credit card issuance, HDFC Bank led with 2,99,761 new cards, followed by SBI Cards with 2,34,537 additions and ICICI Bank with 1,83,157 new cards.

Axis Bank, however, saw a net decline of 14,862 credit cards during the month.

Over the past five years, the number of credit cards in circulation has more than doubled to 10.8 crore, while the count of debit cards has remained relatively stable, RBI data showed.

The overall adoption of digital payments in India has continued its strong momentum, recording an 11.1% year-on-year increase as of September 2024, according to RBI’s digital payments index.

UPI’s Dominance In Digital Transactions

The report highlighted that the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has been the primary driver of this growth, owing to its convenience and widespread adoption.

UPI’s share in India’s digital transactions has surged from 34% in 2019 to 83% in 2024, marking an impressive CAGR of 74% over the past five years.

Meanwhile, the contribution of traditional payment methods like RTGS, NEFT, IMPS, credit, and debit cards has declined from 66% to 17% over the same period.

On a broader scale, UPI transactions have grown exponentially, with volume increasing from 375 crore in 2018 to 17,221 crore in 2024.

The total transaction value has also risen sharply, from Rs 5.86 lakh crore in 2018 to Rs 246.83 lakh crore in 2024.

This represents a five-year CAGR of 89.3% in transaction volume and 86.5% in value, the report stated.

Also Read: Retail Inflation For Agricultural & Rural Workers Declines In January