Axis Bank launches new premium credit card

Private sector lender Axis Bank, along with Europe's largest frequent flyer programme Miles and More, today launched a new credit card targeted at the premium segment. According to the bank, the card will be available in two variants- World and World Select.

"We have launched this credit card, which will give financial and travel benefits for international frequent flyers. We aim to target affluent customers for this new product," President and Head of Consumer Lending and Payments of Axis Bank, Jairam Sridharan told reporters here.

According to the bank, the cardholder would get access to frequent flyer programme of Lufthansa and other member airlines. Sridharan also said that the cardholder would also get other benefits like insurance benefit and discount of 20 basis points (0.2 per cent) on home loan products.

According to Sridharan, the bank's total credit card book size stands at around Rs 1,200 crore, which is close to 2 per cent of its total retail asset.

"Axis Bank had shown one of the highest growth in credit card segment in the industry last fiscal. Spends had grown by more than 100 per cent for us in the last fiscal. We are positive in this space," he said adding the delinquencies in the credit card industry had now stabilised.

Sridharan, however, declined to comment when asked about the Rs 5 crore penalty imposed by the Reserve Bank on the bank for violating know your customer norms.