Axis Bank to raise DCC markup and revise credit-card fees, rewards from 28 August 2026

Axis Bank will raise dynamic currency conversion markup from 1.5% to 3.5%, lift late fees on balances above ₹50,000 to ₹1,300, revise partial-payment allocation, and exclude tolls, road and bridge charges, and gift cards from rewards and milestone spends.

— Source published Fri, 21 Aug, 2026, 20:33 IST · First seen Fri, 21 Aug, 2026, 20:36 IST · Source Mint · Money

What happened

Axis Bank will raise its dynamic currency conversion markup, increase late fees for balances above ₹50,000, alter partial-payment allocation and exclude tolls,

Key facts

  • DCC markup rises from 1.5% to 3.5%
  • Late fee for balances above ₹50,000 rises to ₹1,300
  • Late fee slabs: ₹501-₹5,000: ₹500; ₹5,001-₹10,000: ₹750; ₹10,001-₹50,000: ₹1,200
  • Effective 28 August 2026

Why this matters

The changes strengthen Axis Bank’s monetization profile while potentially opening partnership opportunities for differentiated travel, toll, and merchant-reward propositions.

What to watch

  • Axis Bank credit-card spend growth, active-card growth, and transaction-per-card trends after September 2026.
  • Changes in card fee income, late-fee income, revolving balances, delinquencies, and charge-off indicators.
  • Customer complaints, social-media sentiment, and reported retention/fee-waiver activity following implementation.
  • Rival card launches or promotional campaigns emphasizing FX markup, DCC treatment, and milestone-reward inclusions.
  • RBI or consumer-protection scrutiny of DCC disclosures, late-fee practices, or payment-allocation methodology.
  • Promote issuer-conversion or local-currency payment guidance to reduce customer use of high-markup DCC transactions.
  • Target retention offers at high international-spend and milestone-oriented cardholders before the effective date.
  • Rebalance rewards toward categories with stronger interchange economics, merchant funding, or lower abuse risk.
  • Increase communication on payment allocation, excluded reward categories, and fee-waiver policies to limit complaints and attrition.
  • Competitors may market zero/low-FX markup cards, broader milestone eligibility, or toll and gift-card rewards to acquire affected Axis customers.