Bandhan Bank has launched its first credit card portfolio in partnership with Mastercard, with four variants named Sparks, Ignite, Flare and Lumina. The Bandhan Bank credit card launch covers everyday shopping, travel, dining and premium lifestyle needs, with benefits such as reward points, airport lounge access and dining offers. Customers can apply online through a digital process or visit a branch for card servicing.
What Is the Bandhan Bank Mastercard Credit Card Portfolio?
A credit card is a payment card that lets a customer borrow money from the bank for purchases and pay it back later, either in full or in monthly instalments with interest. In this launch, Bandhan Bank is the issuer, which means it approves customers, sets credit limits and collects payments. Mastercard is the card network, which means it provides the payment system that allows the card to work at shops, websites and ATMs in India and abroad.
Bandhan Bank unveiled the portfolio in early September 2026 as its first entry into the credit card business. The four names, Sparks, Ignite, Flare and Lumina, are inspired by the flame in the bank logo, which stands for enriching lives. The bank has placed the cards from entry level to premium, so a young first time user, a family shopper, a frequent traveller and a high spending lifestyle customer can each find a suitable option.
The launch was announced by Partha Pratim Sengupta, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Bandhan Bank, along with Gautam Aggarwal, President for India and South Asia at Mastercard. The bank said the cards offer a fully digital application journey and online servicing for statements, payments and reward redemption. All four cards run only on the Mastercard network.
Four Variants Compared: Sparks, Ignite, Flare and Lumina
The portfolio is arranged as a ladder. Sparks is for daily household spending, Ignite adds travel and dining, Flare is focused on travel and lifestyle, and Lumina is the premium card for high spending and international use. Reward points on these cards can be redeemed for vouchers, shopping, travel bookings or statement credit, with one point generally valued at 25 paise.
| Card | Best suited for | Annual fee plus GST | Lounge access per quarter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sparks | Grocery and apparel shoppers | ₹499, waived on yearly spends of about ₹50,000 | 1 domestic lounge visit |
| Ignite | Grocery, travel and dining | ₹999, waived on yearly spends of about ₹1 lakh | 1 domestic and 1 international visit |
| Flare | Travel and lifestyle | ₹2,499, waived on yearly spends of about ₹6 lakh | 4 domestic and 1 international visit |
| Lumina | Premium and international spending | ₹9,999, waived on yearly spends of about ₹12 lakh | 8 domestic visits and unlimited international visits |
Sparks is the entry card for first time users and regular family spending. It earns 2 reward points for every ₹200 spent and offers higher value on grocery and apparel purchases. New users get 500 bonus points on spending ₹5,000 within 30 days of issue. Other features include a 20 percent discount on BookMyShow up to ₹100 per month, a 1 percent fuel surcharge waiver, and 10 percent cashback up to ₹500 on the first EMI transaction of 12 months or more.
Ignite sits one step higher and suits shoppers who also travel and eat out often. It earns 4 reward points for every ₹200 spent, with double points on grocery and travel. Users who spend ₹30,000 or more in a month get 1,200 bonus points. The card adds 15 percent off on EazyDiner up to ₹500 per month for restaurant bookings, along with domestic and international lounge access and a fuel surcharge waiver.
Flare is positioned as a travel first card. It earns 10 reward points for every ₹200 spent, with higher earnings on travel spending, and offers 5,000 bonus points on spending ₹10,000 within 30 days plus monthly milestone points on spends of ₹75,000. The welcome benefit includes an Amazon Pay voucher worth about ₹2,000. The card also provides 25 percent off on BookMyShow up to ₹500 per month, 15 percent off on EazyDiner up to ₹750 per month, golf lessons and a lower foreign currency markup of about 1.99 percent on spending abroad.
Lumina is the flagship premium card. It earns 16 reward points for every ₹200 spent, with higher points of 24 per ₹200 on international spending. The welcome benefit is an Oberoi gift voucher worth ₹10,000 on spending ₹20,000 within 30 days and payment of the joining fee. The card offers concierge service, which is a personal assistance service for bookings and requests, and airport meet and greet service, along with golf games and lessons, higher dining and movie limits of up to ₹1,000 per month each, and the lowest foreign currency markup of about 1 percent.
How to Apply and Service the Card
Customers can apply online at applycc.bandhan.bank.in or visit the nearest Bandhan Bank branch. The online process is digital from start to finish, from filling the form and uploading documents such as PAN and income proof to tracking the application and activating the card. Existing customers can get quicker approval because the bank already holds their account and transaction details.
After the card is issued, users can manage it through internet banking and mobile banking for PIN generation, statement download, bill payment, EMI conversion and reward redemption. The billing cycle is the monthly period for which the bank adds up all spending and sends a bill, and the minimum due is the small part of the bill that must be paid by the due date to avoid late charges. If the full bill is not paid, interest of around 3.5 percent per month applies, so paying the full amount on time keeps the card low cost.
Bandhan Bank and Mastercard: Background and Context
Bandhan Bank Ltd, headquartered in Kolkata in West Bengal, started operations as a universal bank on 23 August 2015. A universal bank is a bank that offers all types of banking services, including savings, loans, deposits and cards. Bandhan is the first microfinance institution in India to receive a universal banking licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which is the central bank and regulator for banks in India. The bank grew from Bandhan, a not for profit body set up in 2001 by Chandra Shekhar Ghosh to give small loans to poor traders and women, and it now serves more than 3.2 crore customers through over 6,400 banking outlets in 35 states and Union Territories.
Mastercard Inc, headquartered in Purchase in New York in the United States, is one of the three major global card networks along with Visa and RuPay. A card network connects the bank that issues the card with the shop that accepts it and clears the payment within seconds. Visa is an American network, Mastercard is an American network, and RuPay is the domestic card network of India developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). All Bandhan credit cards in this portfolio use Mastercard, while the bank already offers Mastercard based debit cards such as Platinum, Titanium and World variants.
Mastercard, Visa and RuPay
Customers often ask if Mastercard or Visa is better. Both are widely accepted in India and abroad, and the choice rarely changes the core card benefits. The interest rate, annual fee, lounge access and reward rate are set by the issuing bank, which in this case is Bandhan Bank, not by Mastercard or Visa. RuPay cards work strongly within India and support linkage with the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), while Mastercard and Visa have a larger acceptance network for international travel and foreign currency spending.
Why the Launch Matters for the Credit Card Market in India
India had more than 12.28 crore outstanding credit cards by July 2026, with monthly spending of over ₹2.08 lakh crore, according to data published by the RBI. The market is led by HDFC Bank, State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank, which together hold a large share of both cards and spending. For Bandhan Bank, whose strength has been deposits, micro loans and branch reach in eastern and rural India, credit cards add a new source of fee income and help retain salaried and young urban customers.
For customers, the entry of a new issuer increases choice in the low fee and mid fee segments. Sparks and Ignite compete with other entry cards for grocery, fuel and movie benefits, while Flare and Lumina compete on lounge access, dining discounts and low foreign currency charges. For the wider economy, wider use of credit cards supports digital payments, builds credit history for borrowers and raises consumer spending, though it also calls for careful borrowing because unpaid balances attract high interest.
Key Takeaways
- Bandhan Bank launched its first credit card portfolio with Mastercard in early September 2026 with four variants named Sparks, Ignite, Flare and Lumina.
- Sparks is the entry card with an annual fee of ₹499 and 1 domestic lounge visit per quarter, while Ignite charges ₹999 and adds 1 international lounge visit per quarter.
- Flare charges ₹2,499 and offers 4 domestic and 1 international lounge visits per quarter, and Lumina charges ₹9,999 with 8 domestic and unlimited international lounge visits.
- Lumina is the premium card with an Oberoi gift voucher as welcome benefit, concierge service and a low 1 percent foreign currency markup.
- Bandhan Bank, headquartered in Kolkata, began as a universal bank on 23 August 2015 and is the first microfinance institution to get a universal banking licence from the RBI.
