NEW DELHI, July 30 — A decade of financial expansion in India has quietly reshaped who can borrow money. New data from TransUnion CIBIL shows that the pool of Indians deemed credit-eligible grew from 79 crore in March 2017 to 89 crore in March 2026 — a net addition of 10 crore people. That is roughly the entire population of a large country, now able to approach banks and lenders for the first time.
The numbers behind that headline shift are striking. The share of consumers who took out at least one loan or credit product over that period leaped from 35% to 74%. Even more telling: the proportion of what TransUnion CIBIL calls “credit-active” consumers — those who regularly use credit and have a repayment track record — rose from 11% to 28%. For those involved, this is not an abstract statistic; it means millions of families now have a formal record of borrowing and repaying, a credential that opens doors to everything from home loans to small business financing.
A Decade of Financial Inclusion
In March 2017, India’s formal credit system reached about 79 crore people — roughly six in ten of the country’s then-population. By March 2026, that number had grown by 10 crore, reaching 89 crore. The expansion was not evenly spread across all types of lending. According to TransUnion CIBIL, the growth was propelled by personal loans, credit cards, and consumer durable loans. These are products aimed at individuals, not businesses — unsecured borrowing for everything from a wedding to a new smartphone.
Credit cards alone have become a gateway. A person who never had a bank relationship a decade ago may now hold a card, use it regularly, and build a credit history. That history then qualifies them for larger, longer-term loans. The rise from 11% to 28% in “credit-active” consumers suggests a deepening of engagement: more people are not just eligible, but are actually using credit in their daily lives.
What Drove the Growth
The story begins with policy and technology. India’s Aadhaar digital identity system, coupled with the rapid expansion of mobile internet, allowed lenders to verify applicants and disburse funds at scale. The government’s push for Jan Dhan bank accounts brought millions into the formal banking system. But the source data from TransUnion CIBIL points specifically to three product categories as the engine: personal loans, credit cards, and consumer durable loans. These are the tools that turned eligibility into action.
Personal loans — quick, unsecured, often small — filled a gap for people who lacked collateral or a long banking history. Credit cards gave everyday purchasing power. Consumer durable loans let families buy refrigerators, scooters, and televisions on monthly installments. Together, they turned a once-elite privilege into a mass-market reality.
For the Indian economy, this shift carries consequences. More credit-active consumers mean more spending, more demand for goods, and a larger tax base. It also means more household debt — something regulators watch closely. But the TransUnion CIBIL report, covering data through March 2026, paints a picture of inclusion rather than overreach. The jump from 35% to 74% in consumers who have accessed credit at least once suggests that the system is not just signing up names but actually disbursing loans.
What to Watch Next
The question now is sustainability. Can India’s formal credit system continue to absorb new entrants at this pace without a rise in defaults? The credit-active share, while tripled, remains below a third of the eligible population. That leaves room for further growth — but it also means tens of crores of Indians are still on the outside, without a loan or credit card to their name.
For policymakers and lenders, the next phase will be about depth, not just breadth. Moving people from “eligible” to “active” to “creditworthy” over the long term. The data from TransUnion CIBIL offers a benchmark: where India stood in March 2017, where it stood in March 2026, and the 10-crore story in between. What unfolds from here depends on whether the infrastructure of inclusion can keep pace with the ambition of those now inside the system.
