Editorial
As the credit card revolution gets underway, there are three questions that the government and the RBI must ask themselves: Should they help or hinder the process?

On Offer
The credit card market is getting cluttered. There is some new offering or the other every other day. With so much action, it has become all the more important to stand out and fight for mind-space.

Name of the game -- getting you to spend
Card-spends are increasing and issuing banks are racing to out do their competitors by offering innovative schemes. Structured reward programmes, promos, affinity and co-branded cards...

FAQs about credit and other cards
Every credit card transaction operates on a network. Card-issuing banks share the network. And when you use a credit card, issued by any bank, the transaction is put through on these networks.

Crystal gazing -- `A single card is round the corner', says Visa
Although debit cards were first introduced nearly two decades ago, it is only in recent years that they have experienced rapid growth in both card numbers and usage.

Networking
Technology is shaping the growth of the payment cards business like never before. Automated teller machines (ATMs) are getting networked.

Rethinking the rules of success
It's easy to misinterpret a statement like the one above by Standard Chartered Bank’s consumer banking head in India, Harpal Duggal.

Bringing card usage down to earth
India is generating more credit card spenders than spending places. While card-base and spends are growing at a spiffy 25-30 per cent annually, the number of merchant establishments which accept cards is growing relatively sluggishly.

Way to go
You can use your credit card as of now only at specified merchant establishments, hotels or to access cash through automated teller machines (ATMs).

Play safe
To derive the maximum out of your credit card, be sure that you start off on a sound relationship with the issuer.