Gold buyers bank on credit cards

KOLKATA: High gold prices are compelling consumers to buy jewellery through credit cards these days because they are afraid to carry such large quantities of cash. Credit card payment gateways First Data Source and Atos Worldline say they have clocked a 60% growth in the jewellery segment this year over the corresponding period last year.

The average transaction through card for buying jewellery is pegged at Rs 15,000 while the upper limit is generally in the region of Rs 1.5-2 lakh. “Nearly 20% of our sales in 2011 have come through cards. We have tied up with HDFC Bank where we are offering 3-6 months EMI facility to the aspiring customer. The customer is not required to pay any interest. Both our brands -- Gaja and Gaja Lite -- are selling well through cards. Even people living in cities like Chandigarh and Amritsar have started using cards for buying gold jewellery,” said Rahul Singh, head of marketing at Shree Ganesh Jewellery.

Amrish Rau, VP and country manager, First Data Corporation India, said: “Being the leading point of sales acquirer for jewellery merchants in India, we see a shift in the preference of payments from cash to card.