Gold Loan Portfolio Grows 3.8x Since March 2022, Becoming India’s Second-Largest Retail Credit Product

Mumbai, April 14, 2026: Gold loans have grown rapidly to become India’s second-largest retail credit product by balance share1. According to TransUnion CIBIL’s Gold Loan Landscape Report, gold loan balances have grown 3.8x since March 2022, with their share in India’s retail credit portfolio rising from 5.9% to 11.1% by December 2025. The growth reflects rising borrower adoption, higher ticket sizes, broader lender participation, and a borrower profile that increasingly includes consumers and women borrowers with more extensive credit histories.
The report shows that growth in the segment has been especially strong among NBFCs, which increased their share of gold loan balances from 7% in March 2022 to 11% in December 2025, and public sector banks which increased from 57% to 62% over the same period. The average gold loan balance per account increased from ₹1.1 lakh in March 2022 to ₹1.9 lakh in December 2025, underlining the rising scale of borrowing in the segment.
Supply trends point to a sharp expansion in market activity. Gold loan origination volumes have grown 2.3x since Q1 2022, while origination value has increased 5.1x over the same period. The average ticket size rose from ₹90,000 in Q1 2022 to ₹1.96 lakh in Q4 2025, indicating that the market is not only widening in reach but also moving toward higher-value borrowing.
Borrower profiles are also changing. The share of prime and above prime2 borrowers in gold loan originations rose from 43% in 2022 to around 52% in 2025, while New-to-Credit participation declined from 12% to 6%. This suggests that gold loans are becoming more broad-based and diverse in the borrower profiles.
Bhavesh Jain, MD and CEO, TransUnion CIBIL, said, “Gold has always held deep financial and cultural relevance in India, but what we are seeing now is a structural shift in how gold-backed borrowing is being used. Gold loans are increasingly becoming a mainstream, organised and accessible form of secured credit. Their rapid growth reflects both lender confidence and rising consumer acceptance.
“What is particularly notable is that the segment is drawing more borrowers with stronger credit profiles, larger ticket sizes and repeat usage. This is an indication that gold loans are no longer being used only for short-term liquidity needs but are becoming part of broader household borrowing behaviour,” he added.
A Broader Borrower Base is Driving Expansion
Women borrowers have emerged as an important growth driver in gold loans’ expansion. Women accounted for 39% of gold loan originations by volume in 2025, up from 36% in 2022, with strong growth visible not only in southern markets but also across western and northern states. The report highlights notable momentum among women borrowers in states such as Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, reflecting the broadening geography of demand.
The report also points to changing borrower leverage patterns. The average outstanding amount per borrower rose from ₹1.9 lakh in December 2022 to ₹3.1 lakh in December 2025, while the number of borrowers with gold loan exposure above ₹2.5 lakh increased to 14% of total borrowers at the end  of 2025, up from 10% in 2022. Borrowers with higher existing balances and greater unsecured exposure have also become more prominent at origination, indicating that gold loans are increasingly sitting alongside other forms of credit in borrower wallets.
Growth Must Be Balanced With Stronger Risk Discipline
The report also highlights the need for sharper borrower-level risk assessment as the segment grows. Based on the study, for gold loans originated in the six months ended June 2025, overall delinquency was 1.1% (delinquency being measured as any trade reported as 60 days past due within six months of origination). Borrowers whose post-origination gold loan outstanding amount exceeded ₹2.5 lakh showed a delinquency incidence of 1.5%, about 2.2x that of borrowers with lower exposure, at 0.7%. In addition, wallet concentration in gold loans, recent delinquency and high dependence on gold loans within the overall borrower wallet are important forward-risk indicators.
The report further notes that borrowers with a history of serious delinquency who subsequently rely on gold loans face a significantly higher risk of disengagement from the formal credit system. Their credit-access closure rate was around 1.6x higher than that of non-defaulting borrowers, suggesting that for a section of stressed borrowers, gold loans may increasingly be functioning as a product of last resort.
Jain added, “As the gold loan segment expands, lenders’ priority must be to balance growth with prudence. Collateral strength remains important, but it cannot be the sole criterion for evaluating borrowers. Lenders will need to assess total borrower indebtedness, repayment capacity, recent credit behaviour and cross-lender exposure more holistically. Stronger borrower-level loan-to-value checks, risk-based pricing, and closer monitoring of repeat reliance on gold loans will be essential to ensure that this important segment continues to grow in a sustainable and responsible way.”