India's credit card market expands rapidly, yet usage lags behind peers

Over the past decade, the number of credit cards issued in India has nearly tripled, reaching 10.7 crore cards, while card‑holding consumers have risen to 5.2 crore – about 25 % of the roughly 25 crore credit‑active population. Outstanding balances have surged 8.3 times to approximately Rs 3.1 lakh crore, driven by digital adoption, e‑commerce growth, and banks' technology‑led products such as instant onboarding, digital approvals and personalised rewards.

Despite this expansion, penetration remains low compared with other economies. Only 8 % of new credit‑card additions are first‑time users, down from 26 % a year earlier. As TransUnion CIBIL Managing Director Bhavesh Jain noted, “India has 5.2 crore people having credit cards, which is just 25 per cent of the overall credit‑active population of about 25 crore people.” Countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Colombia see 70‑98 % of adults holding cards. Competition from the Unified Payments Interface, personal loans and other digital payment options has reduced credit cards’ share of consumption loans from 56 % to 38 %. Credit quality has improved, with overdue balances (91‑179 days) falling to 1.7 % in the year to March 2026.