Working with affected partner banks to reinstate co-branded card services: OneCard CEO

Anurag Sinha, co-founder and CEO, OneCard

OneCard Co-founder and CEO, Anurag Sinha, on March 27 said the company is working with its co-branded credit card partner banks — Federal and South Indian Bank — to remain complaint and will restart issuing cards with them soon.

“To clarify, we work with multiple banks so our platform is still on. Having said that, we are working with our two partner banks to make sure the directions are complied with and we will restart services with them soon,” Sinha said during a fireside chat at Moneycontrol AI Alliance conclave in Pune.

On March 14, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued notices to the said banks, instructing them to suspend the issuance of new co-branded credit cards.

OneCard, which holds tie-ups with both banks to issue co-branded cards, found itself the most affected.

However, Sinha assured stakeholders that efforts are underway to swiftly address compliance concerns.

The CEO highlighted the evolving nature of OneCard's model, remarking, "We have always been making sure our model is compliant with the norms as credit cards is a deeply regulated area. Every circular and inspection we faced in our partner banks, made us change our model, and that's how it evolved."

Besides the said banks, OneCard has co-branded card partnerships with SBM Bank, Bank of Baroda, Catholic Syrian Bank and Indian Bank.

Moneycontrol has previously reported that OneCard was found in alleged violation of access to credit card customer data, which as per RBI is only allowed to be handled by credit-card issuers i.e, banks, and not their co-branded partners.

However, Sinha refuted to the reports and clarified saying," That was not the observation made by the RBI. But, there are certain other observations that we are working with our bank partners to solve."

Sinha further noted that credit cards, despite their rapid growth, also face several complaints.

He acknowledged the rigorous regulatory environment surrounding credit cards, emphasising the need for continuous adaptation and adherence to guidelines.

“RBI believes in protecting the customers and the system on the equal front. Hence, their directions are more prescriptive in nature, unlike directives in other markets."

“Credit cards being one of the fastest growing products, are also among the ones with the most complaints,” he added.

Moreover, the CEO shed light on the challenges faced by both traditional banks and fintech companies in navigating regulatory frameworks.

He stated, "The intensity of regulations on banks is as much as on fintechs. It’s just these are new to fintechs and they are learning to walk the rope."