ICICI Bank expects its co-branded credit cards to contribute 50 per cent of business in this segment by end of the current year and has identified several sectors for introducing such cards.

"Co-branded credit cards will be the cornerstone of our strategy and we expect it to bring 50 per cent of our business as such cards provide move value and benefits to customers, bank and the partner," Chanda Kochhar, executive director, ICICI Bank, told newspersons after introducing a co-branded credit card with Big Bazaar, in Mumbai on Tuesday.

The bank has identified various segments such as travel, telecom, airline, health and retailing for tie-ups, she said.

The country's largest private sector bank has already introduced co-branded credit cards with HPCL, BPL Mobile and Trinetra, which has a chain of grocery shops in Andhra Pradesh, she added.

Kochhar said the credit card base of ICICI Bank has touched 16 lakh (1.6 million) in three-and-a-half years and was growing at 100,000 per month.

On the retail side, she said the housing loans portfolio was rising by Rs 900 crore (Rs 9 billion) per month and constituted 50 per cent of retail advances.