Nationalised Banks Hold 60% Of Gold Loans Outstanding

Mumbai: India’s gold loan portfolio expanded sharply to Rs 15.6 lakh crore as of November 2025, registering a robust 41.9 per cent year-on-year growth (compared to 39 per cent in the previous year), outpacing the growth in total consumption and overall retail loans, according to CRIF High Mark's latest CreditScape report titled Gold Loans in India released on Wednesday.

As of November 2025, gold loans now account for about 14 per cent of total consumption loans and 9.7 per cent of total retail loans in terms of portfolio outstanding (up from around 8.1 per cent a year earlier).

The number of active gold loan accounts reached 902.6 lakh as of November 2025, reflecting 10.3 per cent year-on-year growth. Early-stage delinquency (portfolio at risk for 31–90 days) stood at 1.2 per cent, while PAR 91–180 was 0.6 per cent and PAR 180+ was 0.3 per cent. Priority Sector Gold Loans (PSGL) accounted for ₹4.6 lakh crore as of Nov ‘25, representing about 30 per cent of the total gold loan portfolio.

Interestingly, nationalised banks accounted for nearly 60 per cent of the total gold loan portfolio outstanding and 46.6 per cent of active loans strengthening their leadership position over the past two years. In contrast, gold-loan-focused NBFCs, while holding a smaller 8.1 per cent share of portfolio outstanding, commanded a significantly higher 16.6 per cent share of active gold loan accounts. The report noted that nationalised banks had increasingly skewed towards higher-value loans, while NBFCs continued to dominate smaller-ticket, high-volume lending. Private sector banks, on the other hand saw a gradual erosion in both value and volume share.

A majority of borrowers (60.1 percent) hold only a single active gold loan, accounting for 32.1 per cent of portfolio outstanding. In contrast, multi-loan segments (4-5 and 6+ loans) represented just 10.3 per cent of borrowers but contributed 31 per cent of portfolio outstanding highlighting concentrated exposure within a small cohort.

The top 10 states accounted for 90.8 per cent of total gold loan portfolio outstanding as of November 2025. Southern states contributed over 75 per cent of the portfolio share. Gujarat recorded approximately 66.7 per cent year-on-year growth among leading states. Portfolio quality improved across most states. Portfolio at risk 31–180 days levels were higher than the national average in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Odisha said the report.