Brands
IndusInd Bank launches India’s first two chip debit-cum-credit card
MUMBAI: IndusInd Bank has launched the IndusInd Bank Duo Card which is India’s first 2 EMV chip debit cum credit card.
This two-in-one duo card with two magnetic stripes and 2 EMV chips brings the functionalities of both debit and credit cards to the Indian consumer on one plastic. With a range of benefits that straddle both types of cards, it is a powerhouse of convenience and flexibility for the customer. With just one card to carry for all their financial needs, the customer can travel light with just one card plastic. The card design uses the anagram technique to enhance and highlight the singularity of the duo card.
The IndusInd Bank Duo Card is loaded with features for the young upwardly-mobile customer, and includes offers across entertainment, travel & lifestyle. It simplifies the customer’s life by providing a single statement of account and amplifies the power of the rewards program by enabling consolidation of rewards points.
IndusInd Bank head for consumer banking Sumant Kathpalia says, “The goal is always to simplify banking and enhance convenience for our customers. Innovations such as the Duo Card go a long way in simplifying customers’ lives. We have our ears to the ground and understand that our young and aspirational customers want something unique that makes them stand apart. The IndusInd Bank Duo Card aims to deliver a seamless and delightful client experience and offers the best of both worlds, in one plastic. The convenience of having dual functionality, and a wide range of offers and features on one plastic, is sure to resonate with our audience. Our advice to the customer is to #KeepItSingle, and embrace innovation at its best.”
IndusInd Bank has launched a multi-media campaign that connects with the customer at various touch-points. While television will be used to announce the innovation, digital will be used extensively to engage with the digitally savvy audience. RK Swamy BBDO, New Delhi is the creative agency for the campaign. The campaign has been conceptualised and scripted by Ankur Suman – creative head, RK Swamy BBDO, New Delhi – along with Pragya Bhatnagar and Pankaj Bora. It is directed by Gajraj Rao of Code Red films.
Suman adds, “Cool innovations like these need cool communication solutions. It was important to create intrigue and interest around a product that’s so unique. Here’s a card that keeps things simpler, by keeping them single. Hence #KeepItSingle worked perfectly! Retaining the tone and style of IndusInd Bank campaigns that we have created over the years, this one too, uses light-hearted, slice-of-life situations to drive home the message about Duo Card; helping the audience absorbs its relevance and utility even better.”
IndusInd Bank, which commenced operations in 1994, caters to the needs of both consumer and corporate customers. Its technology platform supports multi-channel delivery capabilities.
As on June 30, 2018, IndusInd Bank has 1410 branches, and 2285 ATMs spread across geographical locations of the country. The bank also has representative offices in London, Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Brands
Godrej clarifies ‘GI’ identifier after logo similarity debate
Says GI is not a logo, will not replace Godrej signature across products.
MUMBAI: In a branding storm where shapes did the talking, Godrej is now spelling things out. Godrej Industries Group (GIG) has issued a clarification on its newly introduced ‘GI’ identifier, addressing questions around its purpose and design following a wave of online criticism. At the centre of the debate were two concerns: whether the new mark replaces the long-standing Godrej logo, and whether its geometric design mirrors other corporate identities.
The company has drawn a clear line. The Godrej signature logo, it said, remains unchanged and continues to be the sole logo across all consumer-facing products and services. The ‘GI’ mark, by contrast, is not a logo but a corporate group identifier intended for use alongside the Godrej signature or company name, and aimed at stakeholders such as investors, media and talent rather than consumers.
The need for such a distinction stems from the 2024 restructuring of the broader Godrej Group into two separate business entities. With both continuing to operate under the same Godrej name and signature, the identifier is positioned as a way to differentiate the Godrej Industries Group at a corporate level.
The rollout, however, triggered a broader conversation on design originality. Critics pointed to similarities between the GI mark’s geometric composition and logos used by companies globally, raising questions about distinctiveness.
Responding to this, GIG said its intellectual property and legal review found that such overlaps are common in minimalist, geometry-led design systems. Basic forms such as circles and rectangles appear across dozens of brand identities worldwide, the company noted.
It added that the identifier emerged from an extensive design process and was chosen for its simplicity, allowing it to sit alongside the Godrej signature without competing visually. While acknowledging that elemental shapes may appear less distinctive in isolation, the group emphasised that the mark is part of a broader identity system that includes a custom typeface, sonic branding and other proprietary elements.
Following legal and ethical assessments, the company said it found no impediment to using the identifier, reiterating that the GI mark is a corporate tool not a consumer-facing symbol.
In short, the logo isn’t changing but the conversation around it certainly has.
