Bankers are folks of principals and interest. Preferably of the compound variety. They are also tough-as-nails bar gainers. So, what happens when some of the most hard-nosed of the species—from Citibank and Axis Bank—negotiate a big-ticket deal? A deal to sell the former's India consumer business to the latter for US$1.6 billion. Sparks fly, sweet nothings are whispered, and finally, contract notes are exchanged—replete with lawyers' delights like notwithstanding, provisions, provisos, concomitants, covenants, and conditions. One key condition in the Citibank-Axis Bank deal is credit cards. A good part of the US$1.6 billion payment, it turns out, is subject to Citi being able to transfer its 2.5 million credit-card accounts to Axis. This has triggered “the largest migration of credit-card users in the history of Indian financial services”, Now, to give credit where it is due, Citi is trying hard to corral its card customers, win new ones too, and hand them over to Axis. With good reason. It's a big deal. Axis wants to zoom to the top 3 in the credit-card league tables with Citi's 'premium' customers, while Citi, well, wants its money in full. But, like many things in life, it's easier said than done. For one, Citi is losing card customers. The first question therefore is: Axis wants Citi's credit-card users, but do Citi's users want Axis? The second, will the RBI's rules queer the pitch further?
