India's credit card industry continued to witnesses strong growth in July 2026, with total cards outstanding rising 1% month-on-month and 9.9% year-on-year to 12.29 crore. However, spending activity remained moderate.
HDFC Bank retained its position to add highest number of credit cards and dominated spending too. The bank added 2.30 lakh cards during July, the highest absolute addition among major issuers. However, spending growth remained relatively flat compared with peers, indicating a moderation in transaction momentum.
ICICI Bank emerged as one of the strongest performers on the growth front. The lender reported the highest YoY growth in cards outstanding at 9%, highlighting continued market share gains. ICICI also recorded the strongest MoM increase in card spends at 8%, pointing to a sharp recovery in customer spending activity during the month, although its spending growth remained comparatively weak on a YoY basis.
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SBI Cards continued to demonstrate robust spending traction. The company added 1.83 lakh cards during July, making it one of the top contributors to industry-wide card additions. Moreover, SBI Cards reported the highest YoY spending growth among major issuers at 22%
Among other players, Bank of Baroda posted the highest MoM growth in cards outstanding at 2%, while also witnessing an improvement in spending trends. Kotak Mahindra Bank and Axis Bank reported healthy MoM recovery in spending volumes. However, Axis continued to witness relatively slower growth in card additions compared with peers.
Overall, card issuance remained healthy across most issuers, while spending trends were mixed. Strong MoM spending recovery was seen across ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank and Bank of Baroda, whereas spending weakened at SBI Cards and remained largely stable at HDFC Bank.
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