Yes Bank aims to double credit card customer base in 2 years, multiply portfolio by 4: Head of credit card business

The private sector Yes Bank is looking to build a brand around its credit card business and aiming to double its customer base in the segment over the next two years, said Rajanish Prabhu, director of its credit card business.

Additionally, the bank is targeting a four-fold increase in its book value over the next two years.

“(Industry) credit card overheads are back to pre-Covid levels. Some banks say 80-90 percent, for some it’s 90 percent, my intuition is that most of it is back to normal. Some of the sectors are still sluggish, especially when it comes to touring and travel where there is a recovery of around 25-30 percent, ”Rajanish Prabhu, Head of Credit Cards and Merchant Acquisition, Yes Bank told PTI in an interview.

“For places to eat and hotels, the recovery is even less, but when you look at grocery stores, supermarkets or utility payments and electronics stores, you see a lot of momentum there,” he said.

In general, the industry is looking back and within that e-commerce it has seen a good jump and a change in online penetration has really changed, said Prabhu.

“Our own vision is to make sure our book grows at least four times in the next two years or, say, 15 times in the next five years. We will double our customer base in the next two years.

“But as we do that, we will also make sure we get HNW (high net worth) and super HNW clients. You want the high net worth clients, but you also want the mass-based clients because everyone uses credit cards today. We want to attract all customer segments, ”said Prabhu.

Yes Bank’s outstanding credit card at the end of September 2020 stood at 8,16,208, with a transaction value of Rs 490.76 crore, according to RBI data.

“From the perspective of the credit card industry, spending has returned. But there is one thing that we are comparing November to February, but what has yet to happen is that year-on-year growth must also return in the same way. “

Due to the pandemic, people had no choice but to go online, which has helped gain a lot of traction and these expenses are not only coming from Tier I and II cities, but also from Tier III, IV and Tier II cities V.

“I think that the credit card as a culture, in general with or without the pandemic, continues to improve. If I have to give you perspective, today credit card spending relative to GDP is about 2.5 to 3 percent, if you take it six or seven years away from current time, that figure will rise to about 6.5. at 7 percent, this is our estimate.

“The number of developed countries is much higher. So as more and more people enter the working class, the white collar segment, … there is a cultural shift taking place, there is a demographic shift taking place, I think people will feel more and more comfortable using cards credit, ”Prabhu said.

He said the bank will invest in technology and distribution as well as forge more partnerships with merchants and others.

To seize the opportunity amid the pandemic, the bank recently launched the ‘Yes Private Prime’ credit card, targeting wealthy and HNI customers.

“India as a country has many millionaires, we clearly see an opportunity to serve this segment. And my past experience tells me that throughout business cycles, one of the segments that remains least impacted is really the HNIs (High Net Worth Individuals). So I think there is an opportunity there.

“As a bank, we are taking multiple initiatives on multiple fronts. Clearly, this is a consumer segment, we think we want to attract them and we have attracted them with a great proposition under Yes Private Family… ”added Prabhu.

The lender has also recently started offering its credit card holders the ability to share their points with friends, family or anyone within the Yes Bank family so that one can make a purchase or reservation if there is a point deficit. .

“For us, (our) client will be the most rewarded credit card holder in India. And we also have what we call reward points that never expire. We will also focus on innovation and continue to innovate in terms of products and services that we provide to customers, ”he said.

Prabhu hopes things will look better in the future, although there will be some uncertainty.

“It’s hard to predict, but overall I’m saying things will be in better shape. In terms of collection efficiency, we’re back to where we were, so that’s an important metric. We have also implemented the restructuring plan (for credit cards).

“That number is not too big, it is very, very small and we also make sure our clients get all the support,” added Prabhu.