August 26, just the time of the 19th anniversary of the founding of Industrial Bank, reporters learned from the Credit Card Center of Industrial Bank that the bank's newly issued credit cards broke through 1 million during January to August this year, with accelerated card issue volume over 2 million. Within the term of only 8 months, the bank has doubled the card issue volume with transaction amount near 10 billion yuan, almost 2 times the figure of last year.
Since its first credit card issued in July 2004, Industrial Bank has been advocating the brand idea of “Wise consumption, Natural Life”, active in innovation, constantly richening the product line and product function, and improving the service network and card consumption environment, offering a favorable brand experience for card holders through all-round, close and value-added service. So far, the credit card family of Industrial Bank has boasted products of 6 categories that cover more than 20 styles. The credit card of Industrial Bank has become one of the domestic brands that with best product line coverage, which including several innovative moves:
In 2005, the “Garfield Credit Card” debuted by Industrial Bank blazed a new trail for domestic cartoon credit card. With the dynamic design that matching special shape and the idea of lover card concept, the card created 3 “No .1”s inside domestic banking industry, achieving the “Best Card Design of the Year” and “Best Card Promotion of the Year” by MasterCard International, and Cardholders' Favorite Cartoon Card on First China Credit Card Charts.
In 2006, Industrial Bank launched its QQ Show Credit Card jointly with Tencent, the first domestic credit card that integrated the actual and the virtual in one, offering QQ Show group featured Internet services as virtual card payment, repayment through www.tenpay.com , online application, notice for electronic account statement, and instant message reminding. With its vivid animation and cartoon design, MINI Card shape and the concept of first virtual credit card, the card has embraced popular response from vogue youth.
In 2007, “Auto Card” and “Lady's Card” were put into market one after the other. The former one offers value-added services as gas subsidy, car insurance discount, rewarded scores for gas fee paying and so on. Its unique luminous front design fully emits the charm of cardholders' exalted class and vogue taste. The latter one, as the first featured card that targeting the group of urban women, again concentrates the innovational thinking of Industrial Bank, endowing more care for women consumers. The cardholders can enjoy considerable discounts in fitness clubs, beauty salons and restaurants. Besides, the membership of Beauty Club and regular theme parties in respect of fashion, wealth management and beauty care are available for cardholders. Cardholders even have the opportunities to become special model for the magazine. The Lady's Card issue volume broke through 200 thousand within the first 3 months after launch, striking a brilliant pose in the dog-eat-dog women credit card market.
While satisfying the individualized and diversified demand of clients with its innovative products, Industrial Bank furthermore carried out a series of favorable measures for its clients in return. The favorable measures included gift-give-out for card opening and card consumption, installment payment for shopping, score-rewarded plan, super-valued travel scheme and discount shopping. The score-reward plan covered featured services as rewarded score consumption, rewarded score advance, rewarded score combination, permanent rewarded score and air miles exchange with rewarded score, having become one of the best competitive brands of the “Loyal Service Scheme for Credit Card Users”. Industrial Bank initiated the rewarded score consumption service in a nationwide range. By converting the rewarded scores into consumable cash in published proportion, the move not only brought the rewarded score exchange out of the traditional gift exchange, but also helped cardholders clearly control the value of their rewarded scores, greatly improving the brand reliability and brand credit.
With regard to the card consumption environment and risk control, Industrial Bank spares no effort as well. The “Online Application Service for Garfield Credit Car” promoted by both Industrial Bank and the domestic credit card gateway websites www.51credit.com initiated an innovative platform for credit card application and approval. Some domestic financial media commended the act as the “New Marketing Landmark for Credit Card in China ”.
Recently, by resorting to its first-mover advantages in institutional cooperation and supporting by its self-dominated brand -- Bank-Bank Platform, Industrial Bank cooperates with small and medium-sized banks to foster the “Easy Repayment” service system in full swing, offering a more convenient and thoughtful service for the consumption and repayment of cardholders.
Risk is the biggest cost and hence Industrial Bank retained credit card risk management experts from its strategic cooperation partner, Hang Seng Bank Limited. Setting prudent and flexible credit policies according to the peculiarity of domestic market, referring to the successful experience of Hang Seng Limited in credit investigation, forgery risk control and overdue collection, and establishing an all-sided, whole-process and dynamic risk management system for credit card business, all the moves helped the credit card assets quality stand at a sound standard.
With the strategic transformation in business development and profit-making modes, insisting the guideline of “High jumping-off, High standard, and High taste”, the credit card business of Industrial Bank has been on the way toward sound development with high speed after three-year’s effort and accumulation. The business development goal of profit-making will be achieved soon in the coming future.