ICICI gains at HDFC Bank's expense, issues 665,000 incremental credit cards

The RBI directed HDFC Bank to halt all its digital launches as well as new sourcing of credit card customers

After the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) stopped the country’s largest private lender, HDFC Bank, from issuing new credit cards late last year, its biggest competitor — ICICI Bank — gained the most. At the end of February 2021, there were 61.6 million outstanding credit cards in the system, an increase of 1.5 million over November 2020, according to RBI data.
 
Between November 2020 and February 2021, ICICI Bank issued 665,000 incremental credit cards, which is 43.38 per cent of the cards issued. HDFC Bank — which has the largest credit card base in the country — saw its