Lazada, Citi launch co-branded credit card for Southeast Asia

Alibaba-owned Lazada and financial services giant Citi launched a co-branded credit card to tap into the growth potential of ecommerce spending in Southeast Asia.

Photo credit: Citi

The new Lazada Citi credit card is now live in Malaysia and set to be introduced to other markets in the region over the next six months, according to a statement.

With the collaboration, Lazada will be able to widen the scope of its products and services through Citi’s global financial platform. Citi, on the other hand, will be able to access the younger and more tech-savvy customer base that ecommerce players in the region attract.

With the Lazada Citi credit card, users of the ecommerce site will be able to acquire 10x more rewards on purchases from the company’s platform and on top-ups for their Lazada Wallets. The card also offers 1,000 bonus points per month – subject to a minimum card spend – which can be used to offset future Lazada spending.

The two companies are targeting over 500,000 sign-ups across the region over the next few years.

According to Citi Asia Pacific and EMEA exec Sergio Zanatti, the tie-up is part of the company’s wider regional partnership strategy. “Through our partnerships, we are looking to increase our consumer banking customer base in Asia Pacific by about 2 million over the next few years,” he said.

Lazada Group chief executive Pierre Poignant said last month that the company is the top ecommerce player in Southeast Asia, with more than 50 million active buyers annually. His comments came after recent reports touted rival Shopee as the most popular ecommerce platform in the region.

During the first quarter of 2019, Lazada had the largest number of monthly active users in Southeast Asia, with Shopee coming in second. Meanwhile, Shopee came out as the most visited platform during the quarter, outpacing Lazada, which held the title in the previous quarter.