Press Releases for July 2026
Build Credit, Earn Cashback: Paisabazaar and SBM Bank India Launch Paisa+Secured Credit Card
Paisabazaar, India’s leading financial marketplace, and SBM Bank India announced the launch of SBM Paisabazaar Paisa+ Credit Card – a Fixed Deposit-backed credit card designed to help consumers start building or strengthen their credit health, while earning cashback on everyday spends.
Backed by an FD, SBM Paisabazaar Paisa+ Credit Card aims to bridge a key gap in India’s credit landscape by enabling consumers with limited or no credit history to begin their credit journey. The card would also benefit those with a damaged credit profile, to improve their credit score, through responsible card usage.
Along with an opportunity to build their credit profile and earn strong FD returns up to 7% p.a., the card offers cashback across online, offline and UPI transactions, ensuring users earn value on their everyday spending.
Key features of SBM Paisabazaar Paisa+ Credit Card:
- FD-backed secured credit card with FD starting from Rs. 2,000
- FD interest rates up to 7% p.a.
- Up to 1.5% cashback on online spends
- 1% cashback on offline spends
- 1% cashback on eligible UPI transactions
- Zero joining fee; Annual fee of Rs. 499 only
Rajesh Meena, Head- Retail Products, Digital Banking & Partnerships, SBM Bank India, said: “At SBM Bank India, we are committed to expanding access to formal credit through innovative financial products. The SBM Paisabazaar Paisa+ Credit Card is a powerful proposition for consumers who are new to credit or seeking to rebuild their credit history. Our partnership with Paisabazaar reflects a shared commitment to making credit more transparent and accessible, helping consumers across segments-particularly the underserved borrowers.”
Santosh Agarwal, CEO, Paisabazaar, said: “We believe FD-backed cards can play an important role in accelerating credit inclusion. Millions today remain underserved due to lack of a simple and secure pathway to credit. We are proud to launch Paisa+ with SBM Bank India, hoping the card will simplify the first step into formal credit for millions. The card combines accessibility and value-back in a single proposition, making it an ideal choice for new-to-credit consumers looking to establish a strong financial foundation.”
With a minimum FD requirement starting at just Rs. 2,000, the card makes formal credit more accessible to new-to-credit consumers, students, young professionals, and consumers with bad credit looking to rebuild their credit profile.
SBM Bank Paisabazaar Paisa+ Credit Card offers 1.5% cashback on online spends for fixed deposits above Rs. 10,000. Offline spends and UPI transactions above Rs. 2,000 will earn 1% cashback, irrespective of the deposit amount.
Cashback is credited as Cash Point (where 1 Cash Point = Rs. 1) and earnings are capped at 500 points per day and 3,000 points per month. Since the card is backed by a fixed deposit, consumers will also earn interest on their deposit (up to 7% p.a.), adding to their overall savings.
AI makes investors bolder, but they want human judgement to make decisions
Investors are adopting AI tools to research and generate investment ideas, but they want the judgement of a professional adviser when it is time to act. A new survey of around 10,000 affluent and high-net-worth individuals across 10 markets1, commissioned by HSBC from Ipsos, shows AI is now a mainstream investor tool. Respondents ranked finance and investment as the top area where they use AI (73%) – ahead of work and career (62%), and personal development (60%).
When asked where their last investment idea came from, 62% cited financial professionals and institutions, compared with 32% who cited AI. That gap widens at the point of commitment, with 37% citing financial professionals and institutions as the most influential factor in their last investment decision – three times more than AI (12%). These insights come as HSBC is accelerating adviser-enabled AI in wealth, including the continued rollout of Wealth Intelligence to multiple markets. The LLM-powered platform draws on more than 10,000 data sources, including HSBC research and external news feeds to help Relationship Managers arrive at client conversations better prepared.
Strengthening Export Competitiveness: Exim Bank Envisions an Export Target of US$ 1.5 billion by FY 2030 for India’s North-Eastern Region
Export-Import Bank of India (India Exim Bank)’s study titled “India’s Northeastern States: Export Landscape and Policy Insight” was released on June 23, 2026, by Mr. PVSLN Murty, Chairman of North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Limited (NEDFi), Guwahati and, Ms. Urmi Borgohain, CEO of IIT Guwahati Incubation Centre, in the presence of the senior India Exim Bank Representatives. The Study was released at the joint seminar on “MSME: Growth Engine of Northeast Region,” held by India Exim Bank and NEDFi in Guwahati, Assam.
India’s North-Eastern Region (NER), comprising eight states viz., Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura, is of great geostrategic significance to India, advancing its foreign policy pillars of ‘Act East’ and ‘Neighbourhood First’.
NER’s economic landscape reflects its gradual transformation from a frontier region to serve as India’s commercial gateway to the neighbouring countries and Southeast Asia. Over the last decade, the region’s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) has increased steadily from Rs. 2.8 trillion in 2014-15 to Rs. 5.1 trillion in 2023-24, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.2%. Economic activity in the region, however, remains highly concentrated in Assam, NER’s largest state economy. In 2023-24, the state’s GSDP at constant prices amounted to Rs. 3.2 trillion, contributing to a sizable share of 63.5% of the NER’s total economic output. Despite the agricultural sector providing substantial employment to the region, NER’s economy is primarily services-led, with the tertiary sector contributing to 41.9% of the region’s Gross State Value Added (GSVA) in 2023-24.
NER’s trade and investment flows, set against its unique geographic location, positions the region as instrumental to accelerating India’s trade flows with its neighbouring countries and the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) market. Exports from NER are often destined to neighbouring countries like Bhutan and Bangladesh. With regards to its agriculture and allied sector, in particular, the study notes that production is majorly absorbed within the domestic market than being exported, primarily owing to infrastructural constraints.
Given the landlocked nature of NER, exports originating here are observed to be highly dependent on land ports in the region or sea ports located in other states
HDFC Bank Parivartan Launches Awareness Campaign Against Plastic Ahead Of World Environment Day
Ahead of World Environment Day on June 5, HDFC Bank further strengthened its commitment to environmental responsibility with the launch of an awareness campaign to be mindful about the use of plastic. As part of the initiative, the Bank is conducting awareness drives for customers, employees and the general public.
The campaign, which will be run under Parivartan, the CSR programme of HDFC Bank, will encourage customers across select Bank branches to deposit their plastic e-waste at the branch for recycling and to use alternatives to plastic for their basic needs. Further, the Bank will be organising awareness sessions, collection drives and clean-up drives led by employees, encouraging collective action to reduce the use of plastic.
The Bank has also launched a dedicated webpage to raise awareness on the negative impacts of plastic pollution on the environment, and to enable citizens to take an online pledge to reduce the use of plastic in their daily lives through simple, but effective practices.
Alongside the awareness drive, the Bank is also advancing its community-led waste management programmes across India. Through Parivartan interventions, the Bank aims to implement solid waste management systems in over 1,000 villages and establish material recovery facilities in 15 urban local bodies by the year 2025.
A key project in Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, saw the launch of a 26-foot mural made from upcycled plastic bottle caps, in partnership with Waste Warriors. In Bir and Dharamshala, HDFC Bank is implementing a ‘Behaviour Change Campaign’ in 10 panchayats, diverting over 200 metric tonnes of dry waste from landfills in FY 2024-25.
