Citi is to launch a co-branded credit card with South East Asian e-commerce firm Lazada, as part of a strategy to grow its consumer banking customer base in the region by two million over the next few years.
The co-brand credit card, which offers 10x more rewards on Lazada purchases and Lazada Wallet top-ups, is live in Malaysia and will be introduced to other markets in the region over the next six months.
Tapping into the growth potential of e-commerce spending in the region, Citi and Lazada are targeting over 500,000 sign-ups of the new card over the next few years.
Citi says the tie up will give it access to a younger, digitally-savvy customer pool as it grows its business in Asia Pacific. Similar deals have already been struck with ride-hailing app Grab in the Philippines and PayTM in India.
The bank currently claims approximately 16 million customers in Asia.
Sergio Zanatti, Asia Pacific and Emea cards and loans head, Global Consumer Banking, Citi, says: "Citi continues to gain traction with its regional partnership strategy, and we are delighted to be collaborating with Lazada as we build out our presence and scale in digital ecosystems where our customers are active. Through our partnerships, we are looking to increase our Consumer Banking customer base in Asia Pacific by about two million over the next few years."
Citi's Asia Pacific Consumer Banking business has around 15.2 million credit cards, covering 12 markets in Asia Pacific as well as five in Emea. Zanatti says that close to half of new credit card and loan acquisitions are generated digitally today, representing a more than two times increase in the last three years.