Credit card issuance hits strongest pace in more than two years

Credit card issuance in India hit its strongest pace in more than two years, with monthly spending holding above Rs 2 lakh crore for the second straight month at Rs 2.01 lakh crore, up 9.8 percent year-on-year. HDFC Bank led additions with 163,000 net new cards, followed by SBI Cards (162,000), ICICI Bank (151,000), Federal Bank (101,000), and IDFC First Bank (91,000). HDFC Bank alone accounted for around 29.5 percent of industry spends, underscoring concentration among the top four issuers.