Over-leveraged borrowers jump 3-fold, credit expansion loses pace: Cibil

4 min readMumbaiUpdated: Jul 31, 2026 10:23 AM IST A TransUnion CIBIL study highlights that rising indebtedness and declining first-time borrower growth pose new challenges for India’s retail credit sector. (Representational)India’s decade-long expansion in formal credit has brought millions of first-time borrowers into the banking system, but the next phase of growth could be far more challenging as rising consumer indebtedness, slowing borrower growth and shrinking participation by first-time borrowers emerge as key concerns, according to a TransUnion CIBIL study. A big warning sign is the steady increase in financially stretched borrowers. The share of over-leveraged consumers rose threefold — from 5% in the financial year 2017 (FY17) to 18% in FY24 — before easing marginally to 15% in