Date:20/07/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/07/20/stories/2006072003600600.htm

Back StanChart's new credit card offers 5% cash-back

Our Bureau

MR NEERAJ SWAROOP, Chief Executive Officer-India, Standard Chartered Bank, (left) and Mr Subroto Som, Global Product Head, Credit Card & Personal Loans, at the launch in Mumbai on Wednesday. — Shashi Ashiwal

Mumbai , July 19

Standard Chartered Bank has launched the `Standard Chartered Super Value Titanium Master Card' , which offers cash-back at the rate of 5 per cent on all payments made at petrol pumps and as telephone bills. Cash-back of one per cent will be offered on all purchases made on the card. The annual fee for the card is Rs 750.

Mr Neeraj Swaroop, CEO-India, Standard Chartered Bank, said that the group would expand its distribution and product line and continue to invest in wholesale as well as retail.

Standard Chartered currently has a credit card base of 1.6 million cards. The newly launched credit card is targeted at the `mass affluent' segment that has a card spend of a minimum of Rs 2,500 to Rs 3,500 per month. The cash-back limit that can be availed of on the card has been fixed at Rs 500 per month.

According to Mr Murli Natarajan, Regional Head-Consumer Banking, Standard Chartered Bank, around 33 per cent of all card transactions are on petrol or telecom services. "Card spends on fuel and telecom are growing at the rate of 50 per cent. We hope to secure 20,000 to 30,000 accounts in the next three to four months," he said.

Mr Subroto Som, Global Product Head, Credit Cards and Personal Loans, said that 15-18 million credit card base in India would expand to 45-50 million credit cards by 2010.

In terms of expansion plans, Mr Swaroop said that the bank had sought RBI permission for branch expansion and that the bulk of these branches would be in under- banked areas.

Mr Swaroop said that the bank planned to get into the area of private banking and agri-financing by December.

PD business

On the bank's primary dealer business, Mr Swaroop said that a decision was yet to be taken on whether it would be part of the bank's operations or function as an NBFC.

Talks are on regarding Standard Chartered's stake in Standard Chartered UTI Securities India Pvt Ltd since UTI Securities was recently acquired by Securities Trading Corporation of India. "We have been in talks on who should buy out the partner's stake in the joint venture,'' he said.

Mr Swaroop also said that the bank was in dialogue with RBI about the transfer of branch licenses in its acquisition of the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait.