State Bank of India(SBI) Launches 'Unnati' (Credit) Card Tuesday March 28,2017

Aiming to bring more users in the digital fold, the State Bank of India(SBI) on Tuesday March 28,2017 has launched 'Unnati' (credit) card for its customers holding an account with a minimum balance of Rs. 25,000, SBI Cards and Payment Services (SBI Cards) Chief Executive Vijay Jasuja told

For that, no past history or underwriting will be required, only valid KYC (Know Your Customer) documents and the application are needed, he added. "And, for the first four years, that bank will not to charge anything from the customer."

He also said that the move is a big step forward for credit inclusion as financial inclusion is incomplete without it. This will change the face of the credit card industry as "we are making the process very simple without any complications", he said.

Speaking on the risk paradigm, he stated that for the initial 12 months, the Unnati card is backed by bank deposits. "Till now the practice was that you develop credit history and then come to us for credit card but now we are saying that we give you credit card that is backed by your deposits, you develop credit history for 12 months and we will free your deposits," he added.

What is SBI Unnati card? It is a credit card offered those SBI customers who have a minimum account balance of Rs. 25,000 in their accounts. The annual fee of Rs. 499 is waived off for first four years.

What about Reward Points? Customers will get one point per Rs. 100 spent. Cash Advance, Balance Transfer, Encash, Flexipay and Fuel transactions are not included in Reward Points Program.

They will also get a 2.5 per cent fuel surcharge waiver for each transaction between Rs. 500 and Rs. 3,000 (exclusive of GST, wherever applicable, and all other charges). The maximum surcharge waiver is Rs. 100 per statement cycle per credit card account.

Where to use: The Unnati card can be used in over 24 million outlets across the globe, including 3,25,000 outlets in India. You can use your card to make payments at any outlet that accepts Visa or MasterCard.

Other features: Utility bill payment, balance transfer on EMIs, easy money, flexi pay and an add-on option are some of the additional features available.