Private banks lift ad spends 7% in FY25; ICICI Bank tops with Rs 2,843 crore

India's private banks increased their advertising and promotional expenditure by an average 7% in the fiscal year 2025 (FY25), according to the annual reports of listed private lenders- HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, and IndusInd Bank. The rise reflects higher spending across both traditional and digital media formats.

HDFC Bank stood out as an outlier, reporting a 21.7% jump in advertising and publicity spending in FY25. However, ICICI Bank's advertising budget remained the highest among all private lenders in FY25. HDFC Bank allocated Rs 1,533.33 crore in FY25, up from Rs 1,259.35 crore in FY24, driven largely by branding and communication efforts following the merger of HDFC Ltd with HDFC Bank in 2023.

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ICICI Bank and Axis Bank reported marginal increases year-on-year. ICICI Bank's ad spends rose from Rs 2,829 crore in FY24 to Rs 2,843 crore in FY25. Axis Bank spent Rs 175.40 crore in FY25, up from Rs 167.22 crore in the previous year.

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Kotak Mahindra Bank increased its advertising, publicity and promotion by 4% in FY25 to Rs 1,009.01 crore compared to 970.91 crore in FY24.

In contrast, IndusInd Bank cut back, slashing ad and publicity spends by 9.4% YoY to Rs 144 crore in FY25, from Rs 159 crore in FY24.

Banks channeled a large chunk of their marketing budget into search engine marketing, social media advertising, programmatic ads, and influencer tie-ups to acquire customers for loans, credit cards, savings accounts, and investment products.

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Additionally, the ad spending continued on traditional advertising platforms, such as television, print, and OOH media. Both public and private lenders continued to back cricket and cultural sponsorships, ran festive campaigns, and invested in financial literacy campaigns, etc, especially in rural and semi-urban markets.