Axis Bank Surpasses ICICI Bank in Credit Card Terminals
Axis Bank has rapidly climbed to the top in the credit card terminal market, overtaking ICICI Bank within four years. Formerly ranked fourth in FY21, the bank's strategic focus on expanding its card terminal business has driven significant growth. This expansion aligns with Axis Bank’s broader strategy of acquiring deposits and offering loans to small businesses, leveraging its strong presence in UPI transactions and innovative card acceptance devices.
As of June 2024, Axis Bank holds 18.7 lakh card terminals out of the country’s 89.6 lakh terminals, securing a market share of 20.8%. This positions it ahead of ICICI Bank, which has 17.4 lakh terminals. Axis Bank’s growth is primarily fueled by its focus on merchant acquisition, particularly targeting businesses with high UPI transaction volumes. The bank serves as a payment service provider for over a fourth of these transactions in India.
To accelerate this growth, Axis Bank has introduced affordable card acceptance devices, with rental costs as low as Rs 150-200 per month. "Earlier, merchants needed a transaction volume of nearly Rs 2 lakh to justify a card swipe machine. With the new technology, even businesses transacting Rs 30,000 per month can deploy the device", said Sanjeev Moghe, Head of Payments at Axis Bank.
The bank’s device innovations include a low-cost card reader compatible with any smartphone and a soundbox that supports UPI payments and accepts contactless cards via NFC. Additionally, Axis Bank is developing a cost-effective soundbox that doubles as a credit card reader.
On Tuesday, the bank launched Neo, a merchant app designed to streamline payment processes for shops. The app allows merchants to accept payments, access transaction reports, and raise service requests directly from their mobile devices, eliminating the need for a relationship manager. Neo also offers insights into transaction and settlement reports, enhancing the efficiency of shop operations.
Axis Bank’s strategic focus on technology and merchant services has propelled it to the forefront of the credit card terminal market in India.
