SBI Card adds FD-backed Advantage card to YONO with a 10-minute digital application

SBI Card has launched its FD-backed secured Advantage SBI Card on SBI YONO, offering a paperless application flow. The card is aimed at consumers building credit histories and extends SBI Card’s digital credit-access proposition.

— Source publishedWed, 23 Sept, 2026, 17:07 IST·First seen Wed, 23 Sept, 2026, 18:23 IST·Source NDTV Profit

What happened

SBI Card launched the FD-backed Advantage SBI Card on SBI YONO, enabling a paperless digital application journey in about 10 minutes. The secured card targets

Key facts

  • Application completed in about 10 minutes
  • Four SBI Card variants available on YONO
  • More than 22 million cards in force
  • FY26 profit: Rs 2,167 crore
  • FY25 profit: Rs 1,916 crore
  • 22% year-on-year growth in card spends

Why this matters

The YONO integration highlights the strategic value of embedding secured lending products into large banking ecosystems, making fintech partnerships or acquisition targets with digital underwriting and credit-building capabilities more relevant.

What to watch

  • Minimum FD requirement, credit limit-to-FD ratio, annual fee structure and lien-release terms.
  • YONO application-to-issuance conversion rates and the share of applications from customers with no prior SBI Card relationship.
  • Activation, monthly active card, spend and delinquency rates versus SBI Card’s entry-level unsecured portfolio.
  • Rate and timing of secured-to-unsecured card upgrades after six to twelve months of repayment history.
  • Evidence of FD balances retained, renewed or increased after card issuance.
  • Competing FD-backed-card launches or enhanced offers from HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, IDFC FIRST Bank and fintech partners.
  • RBI or issuer guidance affecting secured-card disclosures, deposit liens, digital consent or credit reporting.
  • Surface the Advantage card contextually in YONO during FD booking, balance growth, account opening and credit-score journeys.
  • Use early repayment and spending behavior to offer timed upgrades from secured to entry-level unsecured cards.
  • Bundle card issuance with FD tenures, auto-renewal options and digital credit-score education to increase deposit retention.
  • Test lower-FD, recurring-deposit-backed or partially secured variants to broaden eligibility among younger and thin-file consumers.
  • Expand merchant offers, UPI/card-linking and bill-payment use cases to make the product active rather than merely a credit-building instrument.