India’s credit card spending experienced a notable deceleration in April 2026, following a robust performance in March. While the overall market witnessed a sequential decline in both spending and transaction activity, the competitive landscape revealed contrasting fortunes among key issuers. SBI Cards stood out as the top performer in spending growth, even as ICICI Bank struggled, according to the latest Monthly Credit Card Insights report by Asit C. Mehta Investment Intermediates Ltd (ACMIIL).
Overall Market Trends and Spending Drop
Total credit card spending across India reached ₹1.97 trillion in April, marking a 10.1% month-on-month (MoM) decrease. Despite this sequential slowdown, the sector maintained positive annual growth, recording a 7.1% increase year-on-year (YoY). The report attributes the softer April figures to an elevated spending base established in March.
Major card issuers, including HDFC Bank, SBI Cards, ICICI Bank, and Axis Bank, each reported a sequential spending fall of approximately 11–12%. Collectively, these four giants lost 77 basis points of market share in spending during the month.
SBI Cards Leads Performance Surge
Amidst the broader industry moderation, SBI Cards distinguished itself as the sector's strongest performer. The issuer posted an impressive 29% YoY spending growth, the highest among leading players. This strong showing also translated into the largest market share gain of 327 basis points. Analysts largely attributed this robust performance, in part, to stronger corporate spending trends.
Furthermore, SBI Cards was the only major player to demonstrate meaningful improvement in spending efficiency, achieving a 22% increase in average spending per card.
ICICI Bank Lags Despite Card Growth
In stark contrast to SBI Cards, ICICI Bank emerged as a significant laggard in spending performance. While several other major banks managed to maintain growth close to industry averages, ICICI recorded a 7% contraction in annual spending, making it one of the weakest performers in the segment. The bank also trailed broader market trends in transaction growth, registering only 14.4% volume growth.
Interestingly, despite its weaker spending metrics, ICICI Bank added the highest number of new cards in April, bringing in 0.15 million new customers. This suggests a potential disconnect between new customer acquisition and actual spending traction for the bank.
Other Key Players and Issuance Strategies
Axis Bank also reported a relatively muted performance, with only 4% annual spending growth. However, mid-sized banks continued to gain considerable traction, indicating a shifting competitive landscape beyond the top issuers.
- Federal Bank: Demonstrated exceptional growth, reporting 51% YoY growth in spending and a remarkable 133% increase in transaction volume. This surge was primarily driven by aggressive credit card issuance strategies.
- IDFC First Bank: Maintained strong momentum with 24% annual spending growth.
These examples highlight how smaller banks are increasingly leveraging card issuance strategies to expand their customer base and gain market share.
Industry-Wide Card Additions and Average Spend
Across the industry, new credit card additions slowed to 0.8 million in April. However, the annual growth rate in issuance reached 8.15%, marking the strongest pace observed in the last 14 months. The total number of active cards in force rose to 119.4 million, underscoring the ongoing expansion of India's credit card ecosystem.
The average spend per card across the industry declined 10.7% month-on-month to ₹16,512, while the average transaction value fell 13.5% YoY to ₹3,546. These figures collectively reflect a softer consumer spending behavior during the month.
The report concludes that while overall industry-wide spending growth has moderated, the competitive dynamics are clearly shifting. SBI Cards appears to be solidifying its market position through higher spending activity, while ICICI Bank may face increasing pressure to enhance spending traction despite its strong performance in new card additions.