Special discounts for pet lovers will drive credit card transactions, ICBC hopes
Banks in Hong Kong are going to increasing extremes to secure new card holders, say analysts
As ICBC Asia launches special offers on pet travel packages for holders of its “pet credit card”, analysts said banks in Hong Kong were going to increasing extremes to secure new card holders.
In a launch ceremony on Tuesday, ICBC Asia announced that it would roll out a special e-commerce platform, “My Life”, which would include a “pet section” offering a series of privileges on various pet products and services for holders of the bank’s ICBC Visa Signature Card – referred to less formally as its “pet credit card”.
The offers, which include discounts on pet food, tools and cleaning products as well as on pet travel packages and free pet travel consultations, would help drive credit card transactions, said Agnes Tse, deputy head of the bank’s credit card centre.
We are targeting pet owners as they often have higher incomes and educational backgrounds
“We are targeting pet owners as they often have higher incomes and educational backgrounds,” she said.
James Lloyd, EY’s fintech leader for Asia Pacific, said: “Banks are going to increasing extremes to secure new credit card holders.” He described Hong Kong as an “already heavily card-penetrated market.”
ICBC Asia declined to say how many users they were targeting with the new cards, but they currently have 300,000 credit cards in use in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong’s population is 7.3 million people.