A co-branded credit card is issued by a bank in association with a second party which could be a retail partner, travel website, sports league or a premium hotel chain. A co-branded credit card is sponsored by both the entities and is designed to carry features from both. Depending on the partner, the bank has tied up with, customers can enjoy benefits while making purchase transactions.
Co-branded credit cards come with various offers, incentives and discounts and are affiliated with retail merchants. As per the recent trend, banks have been tying up with e-commerce websites to introduce co-branded credit cards. Fuel and airline credit cards are some of the most common co-branded credit cards where rewards points can be redeemed for air miles, flight awards, products and class upgrades.
Benefits of Owning a Co-branded Credit Card in India
As co-branded credit cards are issued in association with leading payment processing gateways like MasterCard or Visa, it is accepted worldwide. You can shop from any merchant’s outlet across the globe.
Compared to a basic credit card, co-branded credit cards offer great offers and discounts as it exclusively designed for this purpose.
Some co-branded credit cards do not levy finance charges on EMI (Equated Monthly Instalment) transactions.
SOme co-branded credit cards allow their cardholders to redeem their reward points on flight or hotel bookings making your travel cheaper.
Many co-branded credit cards offer excellent discounts on dining and entertainment bills which means you save while you spend.
Flipkart and Axis Bank launch co-branded credit card with unlimited cashback
E-commerce giant Flipkart and Axis Bank have launched a co-branded credit card which offers unlimited cashback on your transactions.
With a fee of Rs.500, this card gives you 5% unlimited cashback on Flipkart, 2GUD, and Myntra transactions. All other transactions earn you an unlimited cashback of 1.5%.and a four free visits to airport lounges in India each year.
Top Co-Branded Credit Cards in India
The key features of a few popular co-branded credit cards have been explained below:
SimplyCLICK SBI Card
State Bank of India offers the SimplyCLICK SBI Card in collaboration with Amazon India, Cleartrip, LensKart, FabFurnish, BookMyShow, Foodpanda and Ola Cabs. The annual fees and joining fees charged for the SimplyCLICK SBI Card is Rs. 499. The annual fee will be waived off if the previous year’s purchase is more than Rs. 1 lakh. No fee is charged for add-on credit cards.
Features & Benefits
This co-branded credit cards provides card users with excellent benefits on online shopping with opportunities to earn 10X rewards points.
SimplyCLICK SBI Card can enjoy privileges like login gifts from Amazon, e-shopping rewards from all the partners, e-vouchers for milestone spends, fuel surcharge waivers and annual fee reversals when the spend exceeds Rs. 1 lakh.
Other cashback offers can be got from Cleartrip, Bookmyshow, Fabfurnish and OLA.
Customers can use the SimplyCLICK SBI Card across the globe at any merchant outlet.
Some of the other benefits of the card include add-on cards, cash withdrawals, railway ticket bookings, utility bill payments, EMI conversions, easy money and balance transfer.
The finance charges applicable on extended credit for the SimplyCLICK SBI Card is 3.35% per month.
Yatra SBI Credit Card
State Bank of India offers the Yatra SBI credit card in collaboration with Yatra.com. The annual fees and joining fees charged for the Yatra SBI credit card is Rs. 499. The annual fee will be waived off if the previous year’s purchase is more than Rs. 75,000. No fee is charged for add-on credit cards.
Features & Benefits
As welcome gifts, card holders can get a cashback of Rs. 100 when they make their first cash withdrawal.
Customers can get travel vouchers from Yatra.com for a value of Rs. 8250, once the joining fee has been paid.
Customers can get 6X rewards points, fuel surcharge waivers, complimentary lounge access, add-on card feature, etc.
Some of the other benefits of the card include add-on cards, cash withdrawals, railway ticket bookings, utility bill payments, EMI conversions, easy money and balance transfer.
The finance charges applicable on extended credit for the Yatra SBI credit card is 3.35% per month.
IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card
The annual fees charged for the IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card is Rs. 300 and the joining fees charged will be Rs. 500. No fee is charged for add-on credit cards.
Features & Benefits
As welcome gifts, IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card holders can get 350 bonus rewards points when Rs. 500 is spent within 45 days of card issue and also a cashback of Rs. 100 when they make their first cash withdrawal.
Railway tickets booked on irctc.co.in for AC1, AC CC and AC2 can get customers a value back of 10% in the form of rewards points.
Other purchase can get customers 1 rewards point for every Rs. 150 spent.
IRCTC also provides various travel offers and privileges including booking of flight tickets.
The other benefits included under this card are fuel surcharge waiver and transaction charge waiver.
Customers can also get various offers from Visa and features like add-on cards, cash withdrawals, utility bill payments, EMI conversions, easy money and balance transfer.
The finance charges applicable on extended credit for the IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card is 3.35% per month.
The JetPrivilege HDFC Bank World Credit Card has been introduced as part of the JetPrivilege program and HDFC Bank. Customers can earn EXTRA JP Miles using this card. The annual fees and the renewal fees charged for the JetPrivilege HDFC Bank World Credit Card is Rs. 2500. Annual fees will be zero until the customer is a member of the JetPrivilege Platinum tier.
Features & Benefits
International and domestic flight tickets bought using this card on jetairways.com can get customers a discount of 5% on the base fare.
Customers can get a complimentary Jet Airways ticket, a discount voucher of Rs. 750 which can be used on Jet Airways, extended Miles expiry, a bonus of 5000 Miles if the spend exceeds Rs. 75,000, a first swipe bonus of 5000 JP Miles, within the first 90 days.
On renewal, customers can get a bonus of 4000 JP Miles and a discount voucher of Rs. 750 which can be used on Jet Airways.
The MasterCard Lounge Program also offers access to premium lounges across the country.
Other benefits include JetPrivilege Tier Points, Excess Baggage Allowance, Dedicated Check-In Counter, Priority Pass Membership and fuel surcharge waiver.
Axis Bank Miles & More Credit Cards
The Axis Bank Miles & More Credit Card is offered by Axis Bank in association with Lufthansa. Miles and More is a travel loyalty program provided by Lufthansa, SWISS Air and Austrian Airlines along with few other major airlines. Axis Bank offers two co-branded cards - World Select Card and World Card under this program.
Features & Benefits
The World Select Card comes with welcome offers of 15,000 miles and 4,000 annual miles.
Customers can earn 6 miles for every Rs. 200 spent on all eligible spends and 20 miles for every Rs. 200 spent on movie tickets booked using the World Select Card.
The World Card comes with welcome offers of 5,000 miles and 3,000 annual miles.
Customers can earn 4 miles for every Rs. 200 spent on all eligible spends and 20 miles for every Rs. 200 spent on movie tickets booked using the World Card.
Accrued miles do not come with a validity period and can be used anytime by the customer.
Miles can be redeemed for flight booking, class upgrades, car rentals, hotel bookings, shopping and other exciting gifts.
Customers can also get Lost Card Liability cover, travel benefits, international airport lounge access, fuel surcharge waiver, EMMI conversion facility, etc.
Jet Airways IndusInd Bank Odyssey Credit Card
The Jet Airways IndusInd Bank Odyssey Credit Card has been introduced as part of the JetPrivilege program and IndusInd Bank. The annual fees charged from the second year for the Jet Airways IndusInd Bank Odyssey Credit Card is Rs. 4000 and joining fee charged is Rs. 10,000.
Features & Benefits
As joining benefits customers can get 15,000 bonus JP Miles and a domestic flight ticket with the base fare waived off.
Renewals can get customers 5000 JP Miles and a domestic flight ticket with the base fare waived off. Online bookings done on jetairways.com can get customers 5% discounts.
Other benefits include Bon Vivant dining membership, Excess Baggage Allowance, Dedicated Check-In Counter, Priority Pass Membership, fuel surcharge waiver, wellness offers, golfing deals, concierge assistance and insurance in the form of Counterfeit Card Liability, cover against Unauthorized Transactions and Air Accident Cover.
The Jet Airways IndusInd Bank Odyssey Credit Card is available as Visa and American Express variants.
First Citizen Citi Credit Card
As welcome offers, customers can get First Use Benefit Vouchers worth Rs.500, Shoppers Stop vouchers for Rs. 500 and Citibank Reward points for Rs.350.
Card holders can get exclusive in-store privileges, payment counters and sale previews from Shoppers Stop.
The annual fee on the car will be waived off if the customer spends more that Rs. 30,000 for an entire year.
First Citizen Citi Credit Card holders can also get attractive wellness offers from premium spas and beauty salons.
Accrued First Citizen Points can be redeemed for purchases at any Shoppers Stop outlet and also on the Shoppers Stop website.
Citibank offers exclusive concierge privileges, dining and shopping benefits along with the EMI conversion facility to card holders.
Value added services on the First Citizen Citi Credit Card include instant loans, EMI and easy payment options and convenient balance transfer plans for customers.
The interest rate charged on the First Citizen Citi Credit Card is 3.25% per month. No fee is charged for supplementary credit cards.
Federal Bank SBI – VISA Gold ‘N More Credit Card
The maximum limit offered on this card is Rs.1.75 lakh.
The card can be used in more than 24 million outlets around the world and 3.25 lakh outlets in India.
The major advantages of this card include the provision of availing add-on cards, Easy Money facility, FlexiPay, balance transfer, and flexible payment methods.
This credit card offers a well-structured rewards point platform and attractive offers for the cardholders.
The maximum credit limit offered on this card is Rs.5 lakh.
It offers some premium features such as international airport lounge access, fuel surcharge waiver, bonus offers, golf course access, Priority Pass Membership, and so on.
The card can be used in more than 24 million outlets around the world and 3.25 lakh outlets in India.
Other benefits of this card include the provision of availing add-on cards, Easy Money facility, FlexiPay, balance transfer, and flexible payment methods.
Cardholders can enjoy exciting offers on dining, shopping, movie ticket bookings, groceries, and so on.
The reward points structure is also well defined and all the benefits mentioned above are available at an annual fee of just Rs.499, that is waived off on spending Rs.1 lakh or more on the card in a year.
You can earn 1 reward point for every Rs.100 that you spend on the card.
In addition to that, you can also avail the benefits of the welcome reward points and the Accelerated Reward points system wherein you can earn 10 reward points for every Rs.100 that you spend on the card on pre-defined categories.
You can be eligible for a maximum credit limit of up to Rs.10 lakh on this credit card.
The card is available at an annual fee of Rs.2,999.
You can earn 2 reward points for every Rs.100 that you spend on the card.
In addition to that, you can also avail the benefits of the welcome reward points worth Rs.3,000 and the Accelerated Reward points system wherein you can earn 10 reward points for every Rs.100 that you spend on the card on pre-defined categories.
Eligibility to Apply for a Co-branded Credit Card
The eligibility criteria for co-branded credit cards vary for each card and for each bank. Listed below are the basic eligibility criteria set by most of the banks:
Applicant should be an Indian citizen
Salaried or self-employed
Should have a good credit history (Not applicable for first time borrowers)
Minimum age of the applicant should be 21 years and maximum age is 60 years
Documents Required to Apply for a Co-branded Credit Card
The required documents to apply for a co-branded credit card are mentioned below. While applying for a specific bank, it’s recommended to check the bank’s website for specific documents as required by the bank.
Copy of identity proof such as Aadhaar card, passport, etc.
Copy of address proof document such as Voter’s ID, Aadhaar, driving license, electricity bill, passport, etc., whichever holds your current address
PAN card copy
Two months salary slips or IT Returns
Duly signed in application
1 passport size photograph
If you aren’t sure which co-branded credit card to pick, visit neutral financial advisory websites like Bankbazaar and choose from a wide range of co-branded credit cards available in the market.
You can apply for a co-branded credit card by visiting the respective bank’s website or through an authorised third party website such as BankBazaar. While the specific bank’s website allows you to access its own credit cards, websites like BankBazaar allow you to find credit cards offered by various banks and financial institutions, enabling you to compare and find the best product available in the market. Let’s look at the process to apply for a co-branded credit card online.
Apply Through Bank’s Website
As mentioned above, you can visit the respective bank’s website to apply for a co-branded credit card. However, before applying for one, go through various credit cards offered by the bank and choose one that suits your requirement. Once, you selected the card, follow the instructions below to apply for it online.
Steps to apply for a co-branded credit card online
Visit online website of the respective bank
Go to the co-branded credit card page
Click on ‘Apply’ button
You will be redirected to an online application page, where you need to enter all the required details before submitting the form
Upon successful submission of the credit card application, the system will generate an application reference number, which should be retained for future queries, if any.
The bank, after receiving the application, checks your eligibility for the applied card and if your profile meets the eligibility, you will be informed about further application process through phone call or e-mail.
Banks typically take 7-10 days to process a credit card application, provided the applicant clears the verification checks and meets the eligibility criteria. If you wish to check your application status, you can use the track application feature available on most bank websites to know how far the bank has processed the application.
Apply through BankBazaar website
BankBazaar is one of the authorised service providers of financial products. It partnered with more than 50 banks and features most of the financial products offered by the banks on its online platform. By providing comprehensive coverage about each credit card product, the company provides an unbiased platform to compare and shop for various financial products.
Applying for a co-branded credit card through BankBazaar is also simple and convenient. You can visit the online website or download the mobile app to apply for any credit card listed on the site. A detailed procedure to apply for a co-branded credit card is provided below.
Steps to apply for a co-branded credit card through BankBazaar
Go to www.bankbazaar.com or login to BankBazaar mobile app
From the main menu, choose ‘Credit Cards’
Select co-branded credit cards under the category filter to get a list of all the cards
Find the card that suits your requirements
Click on ‘Check Eligibility’ to know whether or not you’re eligible to apply for the card
If you’re eligible, you will be taken to an online credit card application page, where you need to enter all the required details and click on ‘Submit’
As soon as you hit ‘Submit’, an ‘Application ID’ will be generated confirming the submission of application. The application ID can be used to know the status of your application through BankBazaar’s ‘Track Application’ feature, which is available on the website as well as on the app.
What are the finance charges that are applicable on the extended SimplyCLICK SBI Card?
The charge for the extended credit for this card is 3.35% per month.
Are there any Citibank co-branded credit cards?
Yes, there is a First Citizen Citi Credit Card with which you can earn 7 reward points every time you spend Rs.100.
What do I do if I do not have a passport as identity or address proof?
That is not a problem as you can always submit your Aadhaar card for address and identity proof.
How long does it take to get my application approved?
Banks would usually take around 7-10 working days to fully process your application for a credit card.
Is it easy to get these co-branded credit cards?
Yes, you can easily apply for any co-branded credit card of your choice through the bank’s website. Once you fill in a form and submit it, your application will be processed.
What are the eligibility criteria for applying for a co-branded credit card?
You need to be a citizen of India, a salaried person, should have a good credit score and be between 21 and 60 years of age.
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