Gold loan: Check these before pledging your jewellery
In recent years, Indians have turned to jewellery, particularly gold, as a reliable means to cope with financial emergencies. This trend has gained momentum, with gold loans experiencing an 88.1% increase year-on-year in July 2026, compared to 21.4% and 16.2% growth respectively in retail loans by banks and NBFCs. Muthoot Finance's MD, George Alexander Muthoot, notes that the assets under management (AUM) for gold loans grew by 50% year-on-year in 2025-26, the highest rate seen in the past five years.
Pravin Salian, a financial consultant and gold loan expert, explains that multiple factors are contributing to this surge, such as rising gold prices, strong collateral values, repeat borrowing, increasing credit demand, and the convenience of secured funding. The RBI data reveals that gold loan portfolio outstanding reached Rs.22.7 trillion in August 2026, and the LTV ratio has been increased to up to 85% since April 2026.
Written by urgent.news from The Economic Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
