Credit Cards for Chartered Accountants: ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD vs AU CA Metal, Compared
Two lifetime-free credit cards are built for chartered accountants: BOBCARD's ICAI Exclusive and AU Small Finance Bank's CA Metal. Read from each bank's own pages and terms on 16 October 2026, they reward different spending. On ₹40,000 a month of mixed spending AU's card returns about ₹4,350 a year and BOBCARD's ₹3,360; with heavy travel AU's lead widens to ₹9,633 against ₹4,050; for mostly online shopping BOBCARD wins, ₹3,600 against ₹2,823. BOBCARD's quarterly milestone can turn the answer round. Here are the rates, the caps, what earns nothing, the lounges, forex, insurance, the 25% ICAI renewal cashback and who may apply.
Two Indian credit cards are made for chartered accountants. BOBCARD, Bank of Baroda's card company, issues the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD to members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. AU Small Finance Bank issues the CA Metal Credit Card under a banking programme it built with ICAI. Neither charges a joining or an annual fee. They reward different spending, though, so the right one depends on where a CA's money goes each month. This piece puts the two side by side and values each on three spending patterns.
Written on 16 October 2026. Every rate, cap, fee and condition below is from BOBCARD's and AU Small Finance Bank's own product pages, terms and key fact statements, read that day; the sources are listed at the end. The yearly values come from CardWise, this site's card finder, which values a point at the rate each bank states for cash redemption and takes off AU's ₹99 + GST redemption fee once a year. Neither bank pays this site anything, and there are no affiliate links. This compares published terms. It is not a recommendation to apply for either card.
₹0 — joining and annual fee on both cards · 1.25% — BOBCARD's return on online shopping, online bookings and dining, up to ₹250 a statement · 2% — AU's return on dining, flights and hotels, up to ₹1,250 a statement · ₹9,633 vs ₹4,050 — a year's rewards for a travel-heavy CA, AU against BOBCARD · ₹3,600 vs ₹2,823 — the same for an online-heavy CA, BOBCARD against AU · 25% — the cashback AU pays on the annual ICAI membership fee.
The two cards side by side
| ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD | AU CA Metal | |
|---|---|---|
| Joining and annual fee | Nil | Nil (lifetime free) |
| Faster earning | 5 points per ₹100 on dining, online spending and some bills | 8 points per ₹100 on dining, travel, tax payments and software |
| Cap on the faster rate | 1,000 points a statement cycle | 5,000 points a statement cycle |
| Everything else | 1 point per ₹100 | 2 points per ₹100; 1 on utility, telecom and insurance bills |
| A point is worth | ₹0.25 as cashback | ₹0.25 (AU's general rate) |
| Redeeming points | From 1,000 points, no fee | ₹99 + GST each time |
| Forex markup | 2% | 1.99% |
| Airport lounges | 3 domestic visits a quarter, after ₹40,000 of spending in the previous quarter | 2 domestic visits a quarter, after ₹50,000 of spending in the previous quarter |
| Fuel surcharge waiver | 1% on ₹400 to ₹5,000, up to ₹250 a statement | 1% on ₹400 to ₹5,000, up to ₹250 a statement month |
| Welcome | 500 points (₹125) on ₹5,000 in 60 days; 12 months of FITPASS PRO on cards issued from 1 August 2026 | 2,000 points (₹500) on ₹5,000 in 30 days; a quarter of SwiggyOne on ₹10,000 |
| Milestone | 4,000 points (₹1,000) a quarter on spending above ₹1 lakh or the credit limit, whichever is higher | None |
| Insurance | Professional indemnity up to ₹5 lakh; air accident death ₹15 lakh; other accidental death ₹5 lakh | Air accident cover ₹50 lakh |
| Something only this card has | Professional indemnity cover | 25% back on the annual ICAI membership fee; a metal card |
| Age | 21 to 75 | 21 to 60 if salaried, 25 to 75 if self-employed |
| Card network | Not stated in BOBCARD's documents | Not stated in AU's documents |
Where the faster rates apply, and where they stop
At ₹0.25 a point, BOBCARD's 5 points per ₹100 is a 1.25% return and its ordinary 1 point is 0.25%. AU's 8 points per ₹100 is a 2% return and its ordinary 2 points are 0.5%. So AU pays more on the spending both cards favour, and twice as much on ordinary spending. The difference is in what each card counts as "favoured", and in the caps.
BOBCARD gives its 5X rate on transactions the merchant's bank flags as online, on restaurants, and on two merchant codes for bills: 4812 and 4899 (telecom equipment, and cable and pay TV). Its product page says "utility bills", but its features terms of 15 July 2026 say electricity, gas and water bills (merchant code 4900) do not earn the faster rate. UPI payments made with the card earn only the ordinary 1 point. Points are earned only on transactions of ₹100 or more, and they lapse two years after they are earned.
AU gives its 8X rate on dining, travel, tax payments and software purchases. For travel booked through an online travel agency, only flights and hotels count. Utility, telecom and insurance bills earn 1 point per ₹100, with utility and telecom capped at 100 points a transaction.
Three CAs, three answers
CardWise valued both cards on three monthly spending patterns. Points are counted at ₹0.25. AU's ₹99 + GST redemption fee is taken off once a year (₹116.82). BOBCARD's milestone is left out here, because it depends on the credit limit; the next section adds it. Welcome points are left out too, because they come only once.
| Pattern (a month) | How it is spent | ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD | AU CA Metal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Everyday, ₹40,000 | Online shopping ₹8,000; dining ₹6,000; flights and hotels booked online ₹6,000; utility bills ₹3,000; groceries in store ₹5,000; other shops ₹12,000 | ₹3,360 a year | ₹4,353 a year |
| Travel-heavy, ₹60,000 | Flights and hotels booked online ₹25,000; dining ₹10,000; online shopping ₹5,000; utility bills ₹5,000; other shops ₹15,000 | ₹4,050 | ₹9,633 |
| Online-heavy, ₹40,000 | Amazon ₹10,000; Flipkart ₹5,000; other online shopping ₹10,000; dining ₹3,000; other shops ₹12,000 | ₹3,600 | ₹2,823 |
Each figure can be checked by hand. In the everyday pattern BOBCARD's ₹20,000 of online shopping, dining and travel fills its 1,000-point cap exactly, worth ₹250. The other shops add 120 points (₹30). The groceries earn nothing, because BOBCARD gives no points at supermarkets. That is ₹280 a month, or ₹3,360 a year. AU earns 960 points on dining and travel, 160 on online shopping, 100 on groceries, 240 at other shops and 30 on bills. That is 1,490 points a month, worth ₹372.50, or ₹4,470 a year before the redemption fee.
The travel-heavy CA shows why the caps matter. On BOBCARD, ₹40,000 a month of online, dining and travel spending fills the 1,000-point cap on its first ₹20,000; the second ₹20,000 earns the ordinary rate. On AU, ₹35,000 of dining and travel earns 2,800 points, well inside its 5,000-point cap. The online-heavy CA reverses the result: AU pays only its ordinary 0.5% on online shopping, while BOBCARD pays 1.25% on the first ₹20,000 of it.
The milestone that can change the answer
BOBCARD adds 4,000 points, worth ₹1,000, in every calendar quarter in which the card's spending is "more than ₹1 Lac or your card's credit limit (whichever is higher)". Four qualifying quarters add ₹4,000 a year. The condition is the catch. A CA with a credit limit of ₹3 lakh must spend more than ₹3 lakh in the quarter, not ₹1 lakh.
| Pattern | Spending a quarter | BOBCARD with the milestone every quarter | AU CA Metal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Everyday, ₹40,000 a month | ₹1.2 lakh | ₹7,360, if the credit limit is under ₹1.2 lakh | ₹4,353 |
| Travel-heavy, ₹60,000 a month | ₹1.8 lakh | ₹8,050, if the credit limit is under ₹1.8 lakh | ₹9,633 |
| Online-heavy, ₹40,000 a month | ₹1.2 lakh | ₹7,600, if the credit limit is under ₹1.2 lakh | ₹2,823 |
So BOBCARD wins two of the three patterns when its milestone is reached, and AU keeps the travel-heavy one. Look at the credit limit BOBCARD actually gives you before counting on the milestone: the higher the limit, the harder it is to earn.
What earns nothing
On BOBCARD, by its features terms and its revision of 1 April 2026, these earn nothing, among others: fuel; passenger transport, including railways, buses and tolls; rent; government payments; education; hospitals; wallet loads; supermarkets and convenience stores; insurance; charity; and fast-food restaurants. The supermarket and fast-food exclusions follow the merchant's category code. Whether a food-delivery or quick-grocery order earns points therefore depends on how that merchant is coded. CardWise does not count those spends for this card.
On AU, by the card page and its reward terms: cash, rent, education and government payments, EMIs, fuel, bill payments through the Bharat Bill Payment System, wallet loads and quasi-cash transactions. From 1 April 2026, transport merchant codes, which include railways, earn nothing either.
One point for a CA to check before relying on it. AU's card page and its reward terms both list tax payments in the 8-point category. The same terms exclude "Education & Govt", and their table of merchant codes that earn no points includes 9311, the code for tax payments. Points on an advance-tax payment are therefore not certain. CardWise does not count them. A CA who plans to pay tax with the card should ask AU to confirm in writing.
Lounges, forex and insurance
Lounges. BOBCARD gives 12 domestic lounge passes a year, three a quarter. Each quarter's passes need ₹40,000 of spending in the previous calendar quarter, a condition waived in the quarter the card is issued. AU gives up to two domestic visits a quarter. From 1 October 2026, a CA card needs ₹50,000 of spending in a calendar quarter to unlock the next quarter's visits. AU's card page still says only that the card must be "purchase-active"; its lounge terms carry the ₹50,000 rule. Neither bank lists international lounge visits for these cards.
Forex. The markups are 2% (BOBCARD) and 1.99% (AU), each with 18% GST on top. On ₹1 lakh spent abroad that is ₹2,360 against ₹2,348, a difference of ₹12. A CA who travels abroad often would save more with a zero-markup card. The forex costs of other Indian cards are compared here.
Insurance. BOBCARD's page lists free professional indemnity insurance of up to ₹5 lakh. That is unusual on a credit card, and it is aimed at a practising CA's own liability. The page does not give the policy wording, the exclusions or how to claim. Read the policy before treating it as cover, and do not count it in place of a firm's own indemnity policy. BOBCARD also lists an air accident death cover of ₹15 lakh and other accidental death cover of ₹5 lakh. AU lists an air accident cover of ₹50 lakh.
The ICAI renewal cashback on AU's card
AU pays 25% of the annual ICAI membership fee back as cashback when the fee is paid with the card. The terms, dated 2 June 2026, set the limits:
- The benefit is for the primary cardholder only.
- It is paid on the annual membership fee for one year, excluding GST and any other charges.
- It is paid once in a card anniversary year.
- The cashback is credited within 60 days of the payment.
- AU may change or withdraw the benefit with notice.
The rupee value is a quarter of whatever ICAI charges you for the year. It is not in the yearly figures above.
Who may apply
BOBCARD's page opens the card to "All eligible & active members of ICAI". It asks for an age of 21 to 75 and an income of ₹3 lakh a year: net annual income for the salaried, the income in the tax return for the self-employed.
AU's card pages do not say in so many words who may apply. The card is part of the programme for CAs that AU announced on 2 December 2025, with a current account and a savings account alongside it. AU's announcement says: "Developed in partnership with Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), AU SFB has created customised products and solutions for CAs in India." The pages ask for an age of 21 to 60 if salaried, or 25 to 75 if self-employed, and do not state a minimum income. They also do not say how AU checks that an applicant is a CA.
Both banks approve on their own assessment. Meeting the published age and income does not mean a card will be issued.
If you are a company secretary or a cost accountant
| Card | For | How it differs from the CA cards |
|---|---|---|
| ICSI DIAMOND (BOBCARD) | ICSI members | The same fees, rates, caps, lounges and insurance as the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD; the quarterly milestone is 3,999 points |
| CMA ONE (BOBCARD) | ICMAI members | The same as the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD, with a ₹1 joining fee |
| AU CS Credit Card | Company secretaries | The same rates, caps and lounges as AU CA Metal, with 25% back on the annual ICSI membership fee |
No AU card for cost accountants was found on AU's site.
Which card suits which CA
| If most of your card spending is… | The card that returns more |
|---|---|
| Flights, hotels and eating out | AU CA Metal: 2% on them, up to ₹62,500 a statement |
| Online shopping | ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD: 1.25% on the first ₹20,000 a statement |
| More than your credit limit (and ₹1 lakh) every quarter | ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD, once its ₹1,000 milestone is counted |
| Groceries at supermarkets | AU CA Metal: BOBCARD pays nothing there |
| Abroad | Neither stands out: both charge about 2% plus GST |
Because neither card has a fee, holding both costs nothing in fees. A CA could put dining and travel on AU's card and online shopping on BOBCARD's, up to ₹20,000 a statement. The usual cautions apply to any second card: more credit to manage, and a hard enquiry on the credit report for each application. Pay the full statement on time. Interest on a balance carried over runs to several per cent a month, which outweighs any reward on either card.
To value both cards on your own spending, open CardWise and type "I am a chartered accountant" along with your monthly amounts, or choose "ICAI member" in its eligibility step. The fact sheets quote each bank's own words for every figure: ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD and AU CA Metal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD free? Yes. BOBCARD's page says "ZERO Joining & Annual Fees", and its key fact statement of 17 July 2026 shows nil for both.
Is the AU CA Metal Credit Card lifetime free? Yes. AU's page calls it a "Lifetime Free Credit Card", and AU's key fact statement of 30 September 2026 lists the AU CA card as lifetime free. Redeeming points costs ₹99 + GST each time.
What is one reward point worth on these cards? ₹0.25 on BOBCARD, redeemed as cashback, from 1,000 points. AU's credit card FAQ gives the value as "0.25 paise" for every category except e-vouchers. Read literally, that would make a point almost worthless. AU's other statements put a point at ₹0.25: the NOMO card's page, the Ananta card's table and its welcome offers on other cards. CardWise uses ₹0.25 and says so on the card's fact sheet.
Which card gives more rewards for a CA? It depends on the spending. On the three patterns above, AU CA Metal returns more for everyday and travel-heavy spending, and BOBCARD returns more for online-heavy spending. BOBCARD can come out ahead in two of the three once its ₹1,000 quarterly milestone is earned, which needs spending above both ₹1 lakh and the credit limit in the quarter.
Do I earn points when I pay advance tax with the AU CA card? Not certainly. AU's page lists tax payments at 8 points per ₹100, but AU's reward terms also exclude government payments, under a list that includes the tax-payment merchant code. Ask AU to confirm in writing before relying on it.
Can a CA student get these cards? BOBCARD's card is for "eligible & active members of ICAI", so a student who is not yet a member does not qualify on the page's wording. AU's pages do not say how membership is checked, so ask AU.
Do these cards work on UPI? Neither bank names the card network in the documents read, so a RuPay card that works on UPI is not confirmed for either. BOBCARD's terms say UPI payments with the card earn only its ordinary 1 point per ₹100.
Which card has professional indemnity insurance? The ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD. Its page lists cover of up to ₹5 lakh, without the policy wording. AU CA Metal lists an air accident cover of ₹50 lakh instead.
Card terms change, sometimes at short notice. Read the bank's current page and key fact statement before applying. The values above assume the full statement is paid on time each month. This is financial information, not advice, and not a recommendation to apply for either card. Issuer names belong to their owners. This site is not affiliated with BOBCARD, Bank of Baroda, AU Small Finance Bank or ICAI.
Sources
The rules and figures in this article can be checked against these official sources.
- ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD: features, fees and eligibility BOBCARD Ltd
- BOBCARD Product Features: Important Terms and Conditions (15 July 2026) BOBCARD Ltd
- BOBCARD Most Important Terms and Conditions and Key Fact Statement (17 July 2026) BOBCARD Ltd
- BOBCARD Consolidated MITC (Generic MITC 2.0, July 2026) BOBCARD Ltd
- BOBCARD: Revision in Product Features and Charges from 1 April 2026 BOBCARD Ltd
- AU CA Metal Credit Card: features, fees and eligibility AU Small Finance Bank
- AU CA Credit Card Reward Points Terms and Conditions AU Small Finance Bank
- AU CA Credit Card ICAI Membership Fee Benefit Terms and Conditions AU Small Finance Bank
- AU credit cards Key Fact Statement and schedule of charges (version 1.9, 30 September 2026) AU Small Finance Bank
- AU Small Finance Bank Credit Card Airport Lounge Access Program AU Small Finance Bank
- AU Small Finance Bank launches an exclusive banking program for chartered accountants in partnership with ICAI (2 December 2025) AU Small Finance Bank
- AU credit cards: list and frequently asked questions (value of a reward point) AU Small Finance Bank
- Master Direction: Credit Card and Debit Card, Issuance and Conduct Directions, 2022 (EMI conversion, late payment charges) Reserve Bank of India
- GST rates on goods and services CBIC