India’s borrowing story is still growing—but it’s changing shape. Below is a walkthrough of what the newest figures say about loans, households, and day-to-day money choices.
The big number: $2.05 trillion in outstanding loans
As of December 2024, total outstanding loans in India were about $2.05 trillion. That’s up from the previous quarter, showing steady momentum—not a surge, not a slump.
Growth is healthy, but cooler than the peak
By August 2025, year-on-year loan growth hovered around 10%.
For context, the long-run average from 2012–2025 is 11.77%, and growth peaked above 20% in December 2023.
Takeaway: We’ve eased from the post-pandemic sprint into a more sustainable jog.
Consumer lending is large—and normalizing
The consumer lending market is projected at $724.2 billion in 2025, up 4.9% year over year.
That’s slower than the breakneck 27.6% jump in 2023 and the 8.3% rise in 2024.
What it suggests: Demand is still there, but households are being choosier—and lenders are more selective.
Household leverage: rising, but not red-lining
Household debt-to-GDP rose to 41.9% in December 2024, up from 26% in 2015.
It’s still below the 46.6% average for emerging markets.
Bottom line: Indian households have borrowed more, but we’re not overextended versus peers.
What we’re borrowing for is shifting
As of March 2025, non-housing retail loans—personal loans, credit cards, and other consumption-led credit—made up 54.9% of household debt.
Housing loans formed 29%.
Why this matters: More borrowing is funding lifestyle and liquidity, not just long-term assets. That demands better budgeting and repayment discipline.
Stress sits at the edges, not the core
The GNPA ratio on housing loans was 3.3% (March 2025).
For sub-prime borrowers, it jumped to 10.1%.
Signal: Prime mortgages remain resilient; risk concentrates in lower-quality segments.
Microfinance hit a rough patch
Active microfinance loans fell from 159 million to 132 million between June 2024 and June 2025.
That’s a clear sign of strain at the smallest ticket sizes.
Implication: Credit is tightening where incomes are most fragile.
Banks are lending more—deposits grew even faster
By June 2025, scheduled banks’ outstanding loans reached ₹184.8 trillion (~$2.2 trillion), up 9% year over year.
Deposits rose 10% in the same window.
Reading: Funding isn’t a bottleneck right now; banks can keep credit flowing without stretching liquidity.
What this means for your wallet ?
- Match credit to purpose.
Use long-tenor loans for assets (home, education); keep short-tenor credit for cash-flow smoothing, not lifestyle creep. - Guard your utilization.
On credit cards, try to stay under ~30% of your limit. It helps your credit score and reduces the risk of revolving debt. - Time your big spends.
Buying right after your card’s statement date maximizes interest-free days—only if you pay in full by the due date. - Know the exclusions.
Many cards don’t reward government payments, utilities, fuel, or certain professional services. Don’t spend “for rewards” where none apply. - Watch for early stress signals.
If your EMIs feel tight, talk to your lender early about restructuring or tenor changes. Waiting increases costs.
Where a UPI-enabled RuPay Credit Card fits
For small, frequent purchases—groceries, pharmacy runs, salons, cafés—a RuPay Credit Card linked to UPI can shift those QR payments onto a single monthly bill. That keeps savings from dripping away and makes tracking easier. (Some merchants disable credit acceptance on their QR, and standard reward exclusions apply; plan accordingly.)
If you use Kiwi, you get a RuPay Credit Card you can link to UPI inside the Kiwi app and scan standard UPI QRs to pay on credit. Cashback applies on eligible everyday offline UPI spends as per program rules, with a lifetime-free card structure and a premium Neon upgrade that offers milestone-based higher cashback. Fuel doesn’t earn cashback, though an eligible fuel surcharge waiver may apply.
