{
  "id": 1719756,
  "title": "Small-city aspirations power education loan demand",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/small-city-aspirations-power-education-loan-demand",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-08-18T13:29:47.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Economic Times",
    "slug": "the-economic-times",
    "url": "https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/education/small-city-aspirations-power-education-loan-demand/articleshow/133324094.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "India's demand for education loans is shifting beyond large cities, with applications from tier II and III cities now making up 86.5% of those received by Kuhoo Finance, according to a report published on Tuesday. Only 13.5% of applications originated from tier I cities. The lender's findings are based on over 2.5 lakh loan applications received between January 2025 and July 2026. The top states for loan applications were Uttar Pradesh (12.87%), Maharashtra (12.52%), Karnataka (7.16%), Bihar (6.91%), and Tamil Nadu (6.77%). Applications for job training courses accounted for the majority of total disbursements, at 41.70%, followed by MBA programs (29%), online courses (9.80%), engineering (5.50%), and medical education (4.70%). This data indicates that ambition is no longer confined to metropolitan areas; instead, it is rapidly growing in India's smaller cities and towns. Higher education is becoming more outcome-driven, and students are seeking financing that is transparent, accessible, and aligned with their long-term goals, stated Kuhoo Finance's founder and CEO, Prashant A Bhonsle.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}