Thoughtful piece !! especially the view that co-brand credit cards can contribute up to 20–25% of the portfolio. That’s not just a growth lever it’s a strategy reset.
But a few questions emerge:
1. Is the co-brand model a hunting tool or a farming engine?
Are we chasing new-to-credit eyeballs for top-line growth, or cultivating long-term spend behavior with deep ecosystem play?
2. What’s the right success metric?
Sign-ups make headlines. But redemption rates, average ticket size, re-spend windows they write the P&L story. Fan engagement is great, but what’s the customer LTV when the marketing glow fades?
3. How do we measure partnership maturity?
Is the co-brand being used for share-of-wallet in its category? Or has it become a card-for-offer artifact? Does it sit in the app drawer, or does it live in Apple Wallet?
In my view, great co-brand strategy requires 3-way alignment:
• A partner with cultural equity
• A bank with ecosystem muscle
• And an investor lens that prizes both customer affinity and transaction depth
Because the endgame isn’t swipes.
It’s sustained customer relevance where the brand becomes the behavior, and the card becomes the trigger.
The BPCL SBI Card is one such example where frequency meets familiarity, and fuel becomes a habit loop.
Pritiman Sarkar Thank you for reading and posing pertinent questions. I will borrow my OB&HR Prof. M L Monga's style of answering our queries while at SPJIMR SP Jain Institute of Management & Research to answer your questions !
The answer : "It depends" on Business strategy, objective with which co-brand has been launched. Interestingly most of the variables in your Qs are actually 'and' rather than 'or'. Thanks again for enriching the discussion 👍
Thank you for such an insightful and refreshingly honest take on co-branded credit cards. Your observations on the reality vs. perception gap and the disconnect between strategy and execution resonated with me.
I had a few follow-up questions I’d love your thoughts on:
--
#1. Why do issuers partner with early-stage fintechs (like Kiwi and Scapia) that may not have a loyal base yet?
You highlight how traditional co-branding is about tapping into an existing audience. But in many recent partnerships, the CBP is still building its user base. What makes these partnerships attractive to banks?
#2. Are banks genuinely open to leveraging CBP data for underwriting and policy flexibility, especially for NTC or thin-file users?
Leaving the potential of off-us insights and alternate signals (mutual fund flows, SIPs, transaction diversity) - Do banks co-develop models or allow policy exceptions based on these variables, or does it largely remain theoretical?
#3. What do you think makes Amazon Pay ICICI a breakout success compared to others that fade after launch?
Beyond execution muscle, is it the product-market fit, data depth, leaner CVP, or ICICI’s comfort with scale-through-risk? Would love to hear your take on what differentiates “hero” co-brands from the cluttered middle.
#4. What should a CBP own post-launch to avoid being just a logo on a card?
Assuming hunting is easy, but harvesting is hard — what KPIs or charter should a brand partner like a fintech or brand actively manage to make the co-brand work long term (beyond PR and topline issuance)?
SK: Good to hear from you and glad that the post resonated with you! Thanks for reading. Excellent questions...for 1) will soon post a note on Fintech co-brand
2) Yes, Banks genuinely work on these. Interest varies depending on how open the Credit team is & how tactful the Business team is in getting the best out of credit folks😊
3) Az pay ICICI Bank co brand is a success or not only these 2 partners can comment, as it depends on the objectives with which the same has been launched. From Card P&L perspective don't think it is a big contributor , considering AZ's bargaining power. Topline & visibility perspective it checks all the boxes! If AZ were to introduce another Issuer partner, things will hot up. Wait for some action from their friends across town and then watch the fun!
Both hunting and harvesting are challenging, point was about undue importance being given to hunting and then not backing it up with adequate harvesting.
Loved the piece, especially since I can relate so much being from that industry (erstwhile ofcourse). We have seen banks burning their hands with a plethora of cobranded cards in their portfolio which did not make much sense. It also sometimes confused the customer as to which card to choose. I feel American Express Cards (charge cards) without any co-branding give benefits across so many brands. Yes, it comes with a steep price! But if its in your line of spends, it gives much value. I would love some insights on co-branded cards usage in the actual brand vis a vis other brands. Do co-branded card users show any different spend / payment behaviour than non-cobranded cards?
Sugato Tripathy: once a part of the Industry, always an insider😊Thank you for reading and for your generous comment. Your comment on Banks not reaping benefit from indiscriminate co-brand launches is on point.
Co-brand card users do show higher spends either on the category being incentivised or the spends at specific merchant partners. The delta over other cards is substantial to moderate depending on the co-brands, card base etc.
Thanks Sayantan for your kind words. Will attempt to cover it in a separate write-up. Intentionally kept it out as it is an engagement between two financial brand...thus will have very different contours. Thanks again 👍
Thoughtful piece !! especially the view that co-brand credit cards can contribute up to 20–25% of the portfolio. That’s not just a growth lever it’s a strategy reset.
But a few questions emerge:
1. Is the co-brand model a hunting tool or a farming engine?
Are we chasing new-to-credit eyeballs for top-line growth, or cultivating long-term spend behavior with deep ecosystem play?
2. What’s the right success metric?
Sign-ups make headlines. But redemption rates, average ticket size, re-spend windows they write the P&L story. Fan engagement is great, but what’s the customer LTV when the marketing glow fades?
3. How do we measure partnership maturity?
Is the co-brand being used for share-of-wallet in its category? Or has it become a card-for-offer artifact? Does it sit in the app drawer, or does it live in Apple Wallet?
In my view, great co-brand strategy requires 3-way alignment:
• A partner with cultural equity
• A bank with ecosystem muscle
• And an investor lens that prizes both customer affinity and transaction depth
Because the endgame isn’t swipes.
It’s sustained customer relevance where the brand becomes the behavior, and the card becomes the trigger.
The BPCL SBI Card is one such example where frequency meets familiarity, and fuel becomes a habit loop.
Pritiman Sarkar Thank you for reading and posing pertinent questions. I will borrow my OB&HR Prof. M L Monga's style of answering our queries while at SPJIMR SP Jain Institute of Management & Research to answer your questions !
The answer : "It depends" on Business strategy, objective with which co-brand has been launched. Interestingly most of the variables in your Qs are actually 'and' rather than 'or'. Thanks again for enriching the discussion 👍
Hi JM,
Thank you for such an insightful and refreshingly honest take on co-branded credit cards. Your observations on the reality vs. perception gap and the disconnect between strategy and execution resonated with me.
I had a few follow-up questions I’d love your thoughts on:
--
#1. Why do issuers partner with early-stage fintechs (like Kiwi and Scapia) that may not have a loyal base yet?
You highlight how traditional co-branding is about tapping into an existing audience. But in many recent partnerships, the CBP is still building its user base. What makes these partnerships attractive to banks?
#2. Are banks genuinely open to leveraging CBP data for underwriting and policy flexibility, especially for NTC or thin-file users?
Leaving the potential of off-us insights and alternate signals (mutual fund flows, SIPs, transaction diversity) - Do banks co-develop models or allow policy exceptions based on these variables, or does it largely remain theoretical?
#3. What do you think makes Amazon Pay ICICI a breakout success compared to others that fade after launch?
Beyond execution muscle, is it the product-market fit, data depth, leaner CVP, or ICICI’s comfort with scale-through-risk? Would love to hear your take on what differentiates “hero” co-brands from the cluttered middle.
#4. What should a CBP own post-launch to avoid being just a logo on a card?
Assuming hunting is easy, but harvesting is hard — what KPIs or charter should a brand partner like a fintech or brand actively manage to make the co-brand work long term (beyond PR and topline issuance)?
SK: Good to hear from you and glad that the post resonated with you! Thanks for reading. Excellent questions...for 1) will soon post a note on Fintech co-brand
2) Yes, Banks genuinely work on these. Interest varies depending on how open the Credit team is & how tactful the Business team is in getting the best out of credit folks😊
3) Az pay ICICI Bank co brand is a success or not only these 2 partners can comment, as it depends on the objectives with which the same has been launched. From Card P&L perspective don't think it is a big contributor , considering AZ's bargaining power. Topline & visibility perspective it checks all the boxes! If AZ were to introduce another Issuer partner, things will hot up. Wait for some action from their friends across town and then watch the fun!
Both hunting and harvesting are challenging, point was about undue importance being given to hunting and then not backing it up with adequate harvesting.
Loved the piece, especially since I can relate so much being from that industry (erstwhile ofcourse). We have seen banks burning their hands with a plethora of cobranded cards in their portfolio which did not make much sense. It also sometimes confused the customer as to which card to choose. I feel American Express Cards (charge cards) without any co-branding give benefits across so many brands. Yes, it comes with a steep price! But if its in your line of spends, it gives much value. I would love some insights on co-branded cards usage in the actual brand vis a vis other brands. Do co-branded card users show any different spend / payment behaviour than non-cobranded cards?
Sugato Tripathy: once a part of the Industry, always an insider😊Thank you for reading and for your generous comment. Your comment on Banks not reaping benefit from indiscriminate co-brand launches is on point.
Co-brand card users do show higher spends either on the category being incentivised or the spends at specific merchant partners. The delta over other cards is substantial to moderate depending on the co-brands, card base etc.
Great one! Just curious if you can add your perspective on Bank-NBFC co brand partnerships.
Thanks Sayantan for your kind words. Will attempt to cover it in a separate write-up. Intentionally kept it out as it is an engagement between two financial brand...thus will have very different contours. Thanks again 👍